


Never Close Our Eyes

by catadamon



Category: Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes
Genre: Big Bang Challenge, M/M, Norse Myths & Legends
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-10-20
Updated: 2012-10-21
Packaged: 2017-11-16 16:40:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 32,701
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/541625
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/catadamon/pseuds/catadamon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Steve promised his fallen soul to Hela, he didn't realize that Tony would chase after him. Even into Niflheim.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> To see the beautiful artwork for this series, please check out the [master post on LJ](http://catadamon.livejournal.com/69238.html)
> 
> Warnings: Canon until the end of S1 of Avengers: EMH. This is an alternate telling of S2, with a few parallels (Skrulls, Technovore, etc), but it really becomes it's own thing. Major character "deaths". Tony and Steve take turns being the damsel in distress. Lots of Nordic myth. FUN TIMES.
> 
> Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Marvel universe. The fact that I wrote this probably will forever ensure I will never work at Marvel.

It really shouldn't have surprised Tony that, in the aftermath of the almost-destruction of everything in the Nine Realms, the Asgardians wanted to party. After all, back home at the Avengers' Mansion, Thor wanted to have a parade every time he successfully used the toaster (and hey, Tony was only going to humor him with that request once). And although he wasn't against partying per se (Tony Stark had his reputation for a reason), the last thing he really wanted to do was party with some Norse Gods while trapped in a suit that was, for all intents and purposes, made out of stone. Magical stone, yes, but it was still fucking stone. And while his suits at home allowed some flexibility for partying (a fact that he knew because of rigorous testing), he really didn't think the dwarves considered nimbleness on the dance floor when they were helping him forge it. Nor did they think about disassembly, because the hell if he could get the thing off without the aid of robot precision. And super strength. So while the celebration was being arranged in one of Asgard's great halls, Tony returned to Nidavellir.

"You don't have to come with me, you know." Tony argued as they walked from where the Bifröst had dropped them. "I can give the dwarves your shield to take a look at. It'll be okay. I promise I won't steal it..." Smirking, he added, "Without permission."

The joke went over Steve's head. "It's not that, Tony. It's just..." Steve sighed. "It's my choice," he said, shrugging. The sack over his shoulder shifted. It contained the pieces of the broken shield, and he looked absolutely miserable carrying them. 

"But the party! All those Valkyrie babes! If you don't make your move first, when I get back you are going to be SOL. This is your big chance!"

Steve let out a short laugh. "I'll be fine. Parties aren't really my thing anyway. After what happened with the Norn stones..." Steve's voice trailed off. "You understand why I would rather not split up." 

Tony looked over his shoulder. So much for trying to cheer him up. Not that it was an easy task. Even Tony felt his heart clench when he saw Steve's shield in pieces spread across the throne room. Captain America’s shield was not supposed to break. It wasn't just because it was a flawless piece of engineering. It was a symbol of hope, of good. And now it was gone. He couldn't even imagine what Steve was feeling. "There’s no danger, Steve. These guys made the suit, and they want it back. Can't say I blame them," Tony said. He held out his right arm to admire the craftsmanship. "It's some nice work, if I do say so myself." Whether or not the dwarves realized it, Tony had been paying close attention to their techniques. He was anxious to see what would happen when he tried them on mundane materials back home. "And that's a low blow with the Norn stones. It was the most viable plan at that moment, Cap. I didn't hear you arguing then."

"I'm not saying-"

"Because seriously your control issues—" The look that Steve gave Tony killed whatever he was going to say next. Instead, Tony cleared his throat. "No one could have guessed that we would all be split up into different fucking worlds. It's not like we were dealing with Reed. Jesus, I have I told you how much I hate magic? Because talk about unreliable probability—"

"This wasn't the first time you have done something like this. I just don't want you taking anymore unnecessary risks like that. Is that too much to ask?"

"Pot calling kettle," Tony retorted.

"I'm being serious." Steve's voice was firm. "And it's not just because you're the team leader. I owe it to your—"

"If you end that sentence with the words 'your father' I swear to God, Steve, I'm never talking to you again."

Steve pressed his lips together in a sort of frown. It looked as though he was holding back a long lecture that Tony did not want to hear, ever. After a beat, Steve smirked and said, "Some people might think that would be an incentive."

"I mean I've let a lot of things pass, because hello, you're an American institution but—" Tony stopped mid thought. "Wait a minute." He whirled around to face Steve, halting their progress in the mines. "Did you just make a joke? At my expense? You did! Holy crap, Cap! You have been hanging around us too long."

Steve tipped his head to the side. "Why are you always so surprised that I make jokes? _Tony_ —"

"We've totally corrupted you," Tony continued, paying no mind to anything Steve was saying. "That's it, no more time with Clint, Jan, or me. We've gone and defiled a national treasure! Is there nothing left sacred in this world?"

Tony continued to rant in a stream of consciousness about the 'sacrediticity' of the foundation of America's hero worship culture all the way into the bowels of Nidavellir. Eitri had called it the Forge, which while true, was also a bit misleading. The Forge was the epicenter of a gigantic city buried beneath the rock. An attendant met them at the city gates with a deep bow. "Greetings, friend Stark. Eitri is waiting for you most patiently."

"Yeah, I'm sure he is," Tony grumbled. "Lead the way, Dori. I have an itch on my knee that I need to scratch big time."

The dwarf motioned with his arm for them to follow him into the city. Tony had seen Nidavellir already during his first trip, so it was fun to glance over at Steve and see his hardened expression change into surprise as they entered the city gates. It was hard to tell whether the structures were carved into large stalagmites and stalactite, or if it was just built to look that way. Everything had a luster to it from the precious materials buried within the stone. While the architecture wasn't nearly as breathtaking as Asgard's, it was still impressive. Tony watched as Steve tried to face forward and not be distracted by the view. Steve failed, of course. Tony may not have laughed when Steve almost tripped and knocked into one of the buildings, making it visibly shake. Probably. 

From there, they were lead into Eitri's workshop, deep within the Forge. Eitri was waiting along with two of his assistants and a long line of tools. "I trust that your endeavor was successful, mortal," Eitri said. He wasted no time in beginning the de-armoring process; approaching Tony with what looked to be huge iron pliers. Steve backed up a few steps as the assistants swarmed in to help the dissembling of the armor.

"Sure was," Tony said. He winced as the large chest plate was pulled away. "Odin's awake, he took care of Loki, we fought a giant ice wolf thing, everything's peachy." Another piece of the armor was pulled away by one of the assistants. "Hey— _watch it Nori_ , I want full function of my right arm—by the way, this is my friend Steve. He had a little accident during the fight with Loki. I was hoping you could help him?"

Raising an eyebrow, Eitri turned to Steve. "With what do you need my assistance?"

Steve fumbled with the sack and handed it over to the dwarf lord. "It's my shield," Steve explained as Eitri emptied the sack onto a near-by worktable.

"This is an extraordinary material," Eitri replied, taking one of the bigger pieces in hand. He paused for a moment, and looked to Steve. "That has been in an extraordinary place."

Steve's entire face flushed. Tony had never seen Steve so flustered.

"Its adamantium steel-vibranium alloy," Tony explained. "Only one of its kind." One of the other assistants pulled off the armor's helmet. "It's supposed to be indestructible, but clearly no one on earth has put it against an Asgardian before."

"Clearly," Eitri said. He turned to Steve, face solemn. "Sadly, this is not something that I can mend." He handed the piece over to Steve. "The integrity of the shield is no longer sound. If I were to repair it, it would break again, and in much easier circumstances." 

Steve held the piece of the shield tight to his chest.

The two dwarf assistants pulled the last of the armor off of Tony. Finally freed from the heavy stone, he walked away, shaking his limbs around. "Not even if you fused it with the stuff the suit was made out of or something?" he asked. "Isn't that made of the same material as Thor's hammer?"

"Indeed it was, friend Stark. However, even when fused with this broken shield, it would not be the same as it once was. Once the integrity of a shield is broken, it is impossible to restore it." Eitri put the remaining pieces on the table back into the sack and gave it to Steve. "I am sorry. I cannot help you."

"How about making a new shield for him then?" Tony asked, a bit irked. "You made me armor that worked fantastic without an OS. I'm sure a shield like Steve's would be a cakewalk."

For a moment, Eitri's kind demeanor changed, his expression turning into a dark look directed at Tony. "It is not for you to request such an item, mortal. I created the armor in my gratitude of helping us escape Loki's minion. But that duty is done. It is unwise of you to request such a task on behalf for your friend."

"Pause a second here." Tony put his hands up defensively. "It's not like I'm asking you to make a sequel to Mjölnir."

"It's fine—" Steve interjected. 

"It's a _simple request_. I just thought that he'd be nice enough—"

Eitri interrupted, "The cost for such a weapon would be too much for any mortal to bear." His voice was hushed now, yet still commanded attention. Tony had always been envious of that kind of power whisper technique. Fury used it a bunch, so had Howard. Whenever Tony tried to use it, it just sounded like he had laryngitis. 

"This is why you the armor had to be returned when the battle was over," Eitri explained. "I am giving you warning, friend Stark. Do not ask me again."

When Tony opened his mouth to protest, Steve placed a firm hand on his shoulder. "Really, it's fine," Steve said.

...

"But I was on a flying horse, Tony! And you missed it!" Jan whined, leaning far too much into Tony's personal space. 

Jan had never been a real heavyweight when it came to normal human alcohol. Several social gatherings in high school had taught Tony that. The Asgardian version of mead had Tony feeling it after two glasses. Jan was on her third glass. Her ears and cheeks were stained bright pink, and she looked as though she would topple over any minute straight into Tony's lap. Jan had been a friend for way too long, and it was crystal clear how Hank felt about her. With Hank taking one for the team and walking Hulk around Asgard (because a drunken Hulk was a terrible idea) Tony knew somehow the mystical Asgard bugs would tell Hank that his girl had been feeling Tony up, so it had to stop. With a gentle poke on Jan's shoulder, Tony pushed her back to sitting upright. "So you said, Jan. But I was a little busy getting magical armor made by dwarves, so I think my experience tops yours."

"Are you kidding? _Flying. Horses._ "

"You were indeed fortunate to have your experience be so invigorating, Wasp," T'Challa said. "Not all of us shared your luck." He was sitting across from Tony, nursing his drink very slowly.

Tony was willing to bet that T'Challa was the only one not working on getting completely shitfaced. Even Steve, who was supposedly unable to get drunk, looked a bit pink around the ears. It seemed even the super serum was no match for Asgardian alcohol. 

T'Challa took a small sip from his chalice. "The land where I was sent was filled with dark spirits and stunk of death. I was lucky to find an escape so quickly. Thankfully, the energy well that I found led me to Hawkeye and his group of elven archers."

"Not really _my_ group of elves," Clint chimed in. "And if you make a joke about Legolas or any other shit in the _Lord of the Rings_ , Stark, so help me! I will fucking end you and laugh about it!"

"I have no idea what you are talking about," Tony replied with a smug grin.

From across the table, Thor joined in their conversation. "The land you describe, friend T'Challa, sounds as if you were in Svartalheim, the land of the dark elves. You took a great risk jumping into the unknown. You could have passed into the land of Niflheim, from which there is no escape!"

"I have heard you say that name before," T'Challa replied. "You called it... the land of the dishonored dead?"

Thor's expression turned solemn. "Indeed it is," he replied softly. "Be thankful none of you were sent there. It is Hela's realm and is part of the Nine Realms connected by the great tree Yggdrasill. Within the red mists Hela sits on her throne, her large beast Garm at her feet, watching the lost souls crawl from their mortal coil into her kingdom. Once in Hela's grasp, there is no escape. Your soul would be feasted on by the serpent Nidhogg for all eternity until Ragnarök comes upon us."

"Well that sounds lovely," Tony muttered. He glanced down the table and saw Steve looking at Thor with wide eyes. His face had turned quite pale. When he noticed Tony looking at him, Steve's eyes quickly lowered and he hunched himself over the table. Pushing himself to standing, Tony walked over to where Steve was sitting and leaned over him, "You okay, Cap?"

"I'm fine," Steve said quietly. "It's been a long day, that's all." 

"Hey Cap," Clint interrupted, "You were late to the party too. _Please_ tell me your adventure story is better than Stark and his seven dwarves."

"The dwarves of Nidavellir are quite noble—" Thor interjected.

"Eitri would kick your ass if he heard you call him that," Tony replied, chuckling as he took the empty seat next to Steve. He nudged Steve in the shoulder. "So what were you doing? You know, besides making an awesome entrance."

Steve sighed. "I'm sure everyone is tired. I know I am. Can I tell the story later?"

"Tired?" Tony chuckled. "Is that even possible for Captain America? I thought you had the battery that kept going. You're the Energizer bunny in human form."

"No, that's you, Tony," Jan chimed in.

Raising an eyebrow, Steve said, "I don't think I follow."

"You're the man that nothing can stop, am I right?" Tony said.

Clint rolled his eyes. "Your hero worship is showing again, Stark."

Tony gave Clint the finger and then turned his attention back to Steve. "Did you land in Asgard only to run into a fight with a Cerberus—or whatever the Asgardian equivalent is called—and rescue some amazing looking damsels?"

"Did you find some Nazis hiding in Asgard and kick their asses?" Clint interjected with a smirk on his face.

"Or maybe end up in one of the other Nine Realms like we did?" Tony continued, ignoring Clint.

" _I said I don't want to talk about it right now, Tony_. How hard is that for you to understand?" Steve snapped.

"Whoa!" Tony put his hands up in surrender. "Sorry Cap. Wow." In a quieter voice he asked, "Is this about your shield? Because I'm totally going to take care—"

"No it's—" Steve pushed a hand through his hair and let out a deep sigh. "I apologize. I didn't mean to snap at you." He stood up from the table, keeping his eyes averted from the rest of the team. "I need some air." And with that, he walked out of the banquet hall while all the eyes of the remaining Avengers were on him.

When the large double doors closed, Clint turned to Tony and shook his head. "Did Mommy and Daddy have a fight while you were out?"

Tony chalked up Clint's not making any sense to the mass amounts of mead he had consumed in the last few hours. It wasn't the best idea to question a drunk person on what they meant, especially when said drunk person had laser precision accuracy with any projectile weapon, but Tony wasn't really operating on all cylinders either. "Huh?"

Clint shrugged. "Well, seeing as you are ' _the leader_ '," he said mockingly as he wagged his fingers in quotations. "Jan insists that you're the Daddy, but I say you're pretty femme compared to _Captain America_ , so you should totally be the Mommy."

"What the hell are you talking about, Barton?"

Clint spoke slowly, with elaborate hand gestures to make his message clear. "Did. You. Have. A. Fight. With. Your. Boyfriend?" At the word 'boyfriend' Clint made a show of rubbing his two pointer fingers together obscenely. Jan snickered into her glass, while T'Challa rolled his eyes, but hid a grin. Thor could only blink.

"Who?" Tony asked.

" _Steve._ " Clint and Jan said in unison.

"Steve Rogers?"

"No, Steve Tyler," Clint replied. "Of course I meant Steve fucking Rogers!"

"You're saying _Steve Rogers_ is my boyfriend." Tony asked, still bewildered by what Clint was saying.

Clint shook his head. "You know, for a super genius futurist guy, you are pretty clueless sometimes, Stark."

"You've been dancing around each other for months," Jan said, waving her chalice in the air dramatically as she spoke. "You spend all your free time together, and you keep giving each other these _looks_. I think I speak for the entire team when I say we're all sick of dealing with whatever sexual tension you've got going there."

"Says the girl that keeps cockteasing poor Hank," Clint said. "But she's right."

Tony snickered, because so help him God if that wasn't the truth.

Jan folded her arms against her chest. "It's not cockteasing when you are legitimately interested in the party. I'm just trying to help him along, because, like Tony, Hank doesn't have a clue. Maybe it's a scientist-guy-thing. You think we could get Hulk to like, de-Hulk and we could run it by Banner?" She turned her attention to T'Challa, "Or hey even easier! T'Challa, you're a science-guy!"

The look that T'Challa gave Jan was absolutely priceless, and Tony could not help but laugh. 

"What Wasp says rings true, friend Tony." Thor added, nodding sagely. "You and the great Captain have made your feelings for one another less discreet as of late."

Clint tilted back his head, laughing loudly. "And if _Thor_ is saying you're obvious, then you might as well send out the wedding invitations." 

"Where are you guys getting this from?" Tony said, completely indignant. "Because _really_? We're just—" 

"Madly in love with each other?" Jan supplied, tipping her glass towards Tony.

"Forget it," Tony huffed as he pushed himself up and away from the table. "While you guys are having this conversation of insanity, I'm going to go get Steve before he gets into one of his sulking moods."

As Tony left the hall, Jan called, "Not to mention you chase after him like a seventh grader with a crush!"

Clint, never to be the one left out, chimed in, "Stick your tongue down his throat! That will cheer the both of you up!” 

With teammates like them, it was a wonder that Tony hadn't turned to super-villainy.

...

It didn't take Tony long to find Steve. One hallway and a right turn away from the banquet hall, there was Steve, leaning against the railing of a balcony which gave a great view of Asgard. It had been hard to appreciate the beauty of the city earlier. Dodging punches from Loki didn't really leave time to enjoy the scenery. Tony stood there watching Steve take in the view of the golden city. It was a breathtaking sight.

The worst part of Clint and Jan's teasing is that Tony knew they were right— at least for his side of things. The more time he spent with Steve, the more he could feel himself falling for him in a way that he really shouldn't have been letting himself do. Steve was a teammate, a friend, and so completely not interested in Tony in that way. Not if he knew what was good for him, at least. 

After a moment, Tony caught himself. Shaking his head, Tony pushed those thoughts away. With Steve's super hearing, Tony was sure that Steve knew he was already there but gave no hint of acknowledgement. Steve either didn't care or was flat out ignoring Tony. Wonderful. It would be so easy just to turn around and go right back into the party. But, conversation of insanity was taking place. Of course, he could always go look for Hulk and Hank, but no. Sulking Steve was never a good thing, and from the expression on Steve's face the sulk had already begun.

Tony joined Steve on the balcony, copying his posture and leaning his arms heavily on the stone railing.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?"

Tony raised an eyebrow. "Cap?"

"It's like a dream. And when we leave, it'll vanish. We are on another world, Tony. There's this amazing city in front of us. When I look out there I wish I had some pencils with me to get it all down on paper. Just so I could remind myself it was real," Steve said, sighing.

"I'd offer to take a picture, but all I have is my mesh suit," Tony gestured down. "Not even my phone made the jump into the dwarf kingdom."

Steve continued to look at the city sparkling. "It's hard to imagine anyone wanting to destroy such a place."

Tony shrugged. "The same could be said for New York, but still we have to save it from destruction at least three times a week. Hopefully, that won't become the habit for Asgard. I don't think I can do this inter-dimensional traveling all the time. I'm bushed!" Making an elaborate show of it, Tony stretched his arms out. "I don't know how Reed— Holy shit, are those bubbles?"

"It looks like."

Rainbow roads, buildings made of iridescent materials, and fucking _bubbles_ floating around. It was official: Asgard was the land that ten year-old-girl dreams where born from. Next, it would be castles made of frosting and animals that could talk. Although, this being the land of the Nordic Gods, Tony wasn't so sure the latter was that far-fetched. After all, as Jan repeatedly pointed out, there were flying horses too.

Beside him, Steve started humming. The tune snapped Tony out of his line of thought. "Wait a sec— I know that song!"

Steve blinked. "How? You're supposed to be the futurist. That song was old when I was a kid."

"A man once told me that a futurist is supposed to learn from the past."

Chuckling, Steve replied, "That is not what I said at all. But really, how do you know it? I've heard the junk that you like to call music. It's nothing close."

The scratches of an old record. Whiskey on the rocks. The smell of motor oil. The voice of constant disappointment.

Oh.

Shifting his weight on his feet, Tony turned around, turning his back to the beautiful view. This wasn't a conversation he really wanted to have in a strange alien land. It wasn't really a conversation he wanted to have anywhere, though, if he were honest about it. Especially having it _with Steve_. Steve, who thought Howard Stark was a great man, the man who helped make him, the man who helped him fight Hydra. Tony lowered his head. "My old man would play it a lot," he said quietly.

There was an awkward silence for a moment before Steve said, "We sang it a lot, back in the war. It's a surprisingly good bar song."

Tony looked over to him. " _I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles?_ Seriously? All you manly commandoes would sing that?" Tony had always assumed Howard would play that song because of Maria. She loved to dance to it. But then again, she would always dance to it alone. Howard would be sitting in a chair, whiskey in hand, staring off into space while it played. Tony still remembered Doris Day's voice floating through the house. The song played five or six times before the record would be stowed away for another time. "Weren't there dirtier songs to be sung? I mean, come on! The lyrics are terrible. Totally cheesy—"

"It was a great song on the piano. And it was a nice ballad to sing in a group." Steve merely shrugged. "Easy to learn, you know? A bit melodramatic, but hopeful at the same time." After a moment, he let out a soft laugh.

"What?"

Shaking his head, Steve said, "Nothing. I was just thinking about the song. I never realized that it illustrated my life so well." 

Tony blinked. He was watching Steve closely. The Asgardian sun (which Tony assumed was not Earth's sun because, yeah there was no way) was dipping into the horizon, making the golden city shine all the more. It reflected into Steve's face, his hair, making him seem translucent and ethereal.

Tony held back the want to reach out and touch him to make sure Steve was not about to fade away with his memories. Instead, Tony cleared his throat and looked up to the ceiling. "When we get back to the mansion, I'm going to make you a new shield. One that can't be broken."

"You don't have to do—"

"Oh, but I do," Tony insisted. "I've already got the theories worked out in my head. I just need JARVIS to crunch some numbers and then start working on the circuitry-"

"Circuitry? Tony, what—?"

"Not to worry, Cap," Tony smirked. "I'll take care of you." Steve looked over as Tony realized his slip. " _It,_ " Tony corrected, not looking Steve in the eye, no not at all. "I'll take care of _it_."

"Thank you," Steve replied quietly. He smiled at Tony then. Not the huge, teeth shining, 'hey I'm a national fucking treasure' hero smile, but a small subdued smile that made Tony clear his throat and announce he was going to go back to the party despite Steve's protests. 

It was the first time Tony had seen Steve show a sign of weakness. Not weakness, Tony chided himself. But for a moment Steve had stopped being Captain America, and was being Steve Rogers. The Steve Rogers before he became a hero, maybe even the Steve Rogers before the serum. 

It was a side of Steve that Tony wasn't quite sure he could handle.

Between conversation of insanity and Steve looking at him like that, Tony chose conversation of insanity hands down. Jan and Clint were too drunk to remember anything in the morning anyhow, so really it was just acting as damage control. Tony could handle being teased that way, but if Steve heard any of that? Tony wasn't sure how he’d react. But it would seem silly to head back into the hall so soon, so Tony made two very slow circuits around the hall.

As he was about to rejoin the celebration, a woman appeared a few feet away. Tony was pretty sure he'd introduced himself to all the ladies in the Nine Realms in the last few hours, but he hadn't seen her. Tony liked her taste in color. She was dressed in a red dress that had intricate gold trim. On top of it she wore an even more ornate see-through robe, with strands of gold and red thread woven throughout. 

Tony opened his mouth to say something as Thor and Clint exited the hall. "Friend Stark!" Thor called, waving his hand. "We were about to set out to find thee—" It was then that Thor noticed the woman.

She bowed her head low to Thor.

"Lady Freyja," Thor replied, seeming startled. He returned the bow. "You honor us with your presence today."

"Mighty Thor, before you leave for your Midgard, I have a request of you and your guests," she said, her voice sounding worn, like she had just been crying. Now that Tony was looking he could see ruby and golden stains around her eyes that looked like tear tracks. Did she seriously cry in red and gold too?

Her eyes turned to Tony and looked nowhere else. "If on your travels, you see my husband, can you please convey a message to him? Can you tell him I am thinking of him? Always."

Clint raised an eyebrow. "Seriously?"

"I know it is selfish to ask," Freyja replied, her eyes still locked onto Tony's. 

Feeling uneasy, Tony looked over to Thor, who at least looked like he knew what this woman was talking about. Maybe Thor could explain what this all meant. Unfortunately, it was one of the few times when the Asgardian was completely silent.

She slipped her robe off her shoulders and handed it to Tony. "Please take this as a payment. It isn't much, but it will be useful to you when hope has run out."

Tony swallowed nervously. "I don't— I mean, I can't—"

" _Please_ ," she implored.

Placing his massive hand over the robe, Thor said, "Of course, Lady Freyja. It would be our honor." Giving Tony a warning look, Thor pushed the robe towards him. 

Bowing her head once more, Freyja took a step back. "You have my eternal gratitude. I wish you a safe return to Midgard and," she added, looking to Tony with heavy lidded eyes. "Please take care of those closest to you."

As Tony opened his mouth to reply, Freyja returned the way she came before Tony could form cohesive words. He blinked a few times, and then looked to Thor. "Okay, you wanna tell me what just happened? And why I was given a robe by the Asgardian version of Ophelia?"

Clint blinked. "Who?"

"Ophelia. From _Hamlet_?" Tony added when Clint still looked lost. "Really, Barton? It's only the greatest drama ever written!"

"Does it have a car chase in it?"

"Never mind," Tony rolled his eyes. Honestly, what did they teach assassins these days? Turning to Thor, he again asked, "What was that all about? She seemed a little— not all there." 

"It is not often that the Lady Freyja visits court. She has suffered much. When I was a small boy, there was," he paused, a sad expression overtaking his face. Tony had never seen Thor so upset. "An incident with the dwarves and Lady Freyja. She had asked them for a favor, merely requesting a trinket of their craftsmanship, which they gave, but at a grave price. To be in debt to a dwarf is a very—" Thor sighed. "Forgive me, I think very highly of the Lady Freyja, and it is difficult for me to speak of this. 

"They took advantage of her?" Clint offered. 

Again, Thor nodded. "When she returned, instead of reaching to her husband for help, she suffered in silence. When her husband discovered what had happened, in part because of Loki's trickery, it tore him apart. He left Asgard, never to be seen again."

"She should have told her husband what happened," Tony said, frowning. "He could have helped."

"She was ashamed, friend Stark," Thor said quietly. "And she did not want her husband to join in her suffering. She was trying to protect him. I understand this, and that is why Lady Freyja has my utmost respect, despite what some of my fellow Asgardians feel. To this day she watches over all lovers, in penance for her own love lost." Thor looked over to Tony and added, "The robe that she gave you is a generous gift indeed."

"Yeah, what was with that?" Tony shook his head. "I don't need a woman's robe."

"That robe was woven from some of the finest materials in Asgard." 

Smirking, Clint chimed in, "And the robe matches your suit, shellhead! I think she did a great job of helping you accessorize!"

Not to be outdone by Clint, Tony gave a nonchalant shrug. "What can I say? She's got good taste in colors. Unlike some people who claim they are covert, but dress in a bright purple that can be seen from space."

For a moment Clint scowled at Tony. But that scowl quickly turned into a large grin that Tony knew was up to no good. Turning to Thor, Clint pat the Norse God on the shoulder and said, "Thor, buddy— you think she gave him that robe because she could sense how desperately in love Stark is with—"

"What's all this then?" Steve's voice froze both Clint and Tony. 

Thor, being Thor, looked mildly amused by all of this. 

Tony turned to see Steve approaching them, still looking slightly forlorn. However, upon seeing Tony, a small smile came to Steve's lips. "What's going on?"

Glancing over to Thor, Clint elbowed him in the stomach. "We were just about to go get some more... mead. Yeah, that's it— right Thor?"

Nodding, Thor said, "Verily. Let us make haste, friend Barton." The two quickly walked away, glancing back at Steve and Tony every few seconds. 

It took everything Tony had to not bury his face in his hands. Maybe super villainy was the option for him to take. Because _really_ , you'd think they would at least try not to make it so obvious they were leaving him alone with Steve. Thankfully, it looked as though Steve caught none of this. 

Instead, his focus was locked on the robe in Tony's hands. "What on earth is that, Tony?"

"No need to be jealous," Tony waved him off. "Just a gift from a gorgeous Goddess named Freyja. She was just so overcome when she saw my amazing self; she had to give me a gift."

At this, Steve let out an honest laugh, and it made Tony feel all sorts of things in his stomach he should not be feeling. Maybe it was the Asgardian mead? Yeah, he'd blame it on that. 

"Really?" Steve asked, trying to hold back more laughter. It was a much better look on him than the expression of loneliness he had before.

"Don't act so surprised, Steve. I'm a very impressive guy."

"That you are," Steve replied, a warm smile on his lips.

Whatever the feeling that Tony had in his heart, it was definitely because of the Asgardian mead. It had nothing to do with Steve and that damned smile at all.

 

On the way back to Earth (because he totally refuses to call it _Midgard_ ), Tony found himself humming a familiar tune as they walked the rainbow road to the Bifröst. He looked over to Steve, who had that same sweet-Jesus-it-was-going-to-be-the-end-of-him smile was on his face. Oh God, Steve had probably heard him humming. 

Tony thought about the probability of breaking Steve's brain by playing the punk cover of _I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles_ Tony remembered from college and whether it would be worth it or not to see the horrified look on Steve's face. It would be an equivalent exchange for what Steve was doing to him.

...

The first time it happened, Tony thought it was only his genius imagination fucking with him. After all, he had just woke up to Nori, Dori, and Ori telling him he was in the land of the dwarves so who wouldn't think, superhero life or no, that it had to be a dream. Although he would like to think that in a dream, he would at least allow himself to be wearing the armor. Then again, his subconscious hated him, so maybe not.

But he could feel the body-wracking pain when he had popped the glass off the arc reactor, so definitely not a dream, and then suddenly, nothing. The pain was gone. Instead of the dark cave full of dwarves and other things totally-from-a-Tolkien-novel that were trying to kill him, there was nothing but a blindingly bright red haze and the overpowering aroma of sulfur. The cold cave floor had vanished and he was standing, staggering in this shift of surroundings. There was nothing but the haze that stung his eyes and scratched at the back of his throat. The chilled air pierced his lungs as he took a breath in, yet he was not cold.

Tony turned his head back and forth, trying to get some sort of bearing of what on earth his brain was doing to him now, when he saw a lone figure kneeling on the ground. Tony would know that blue anywhere. "Steve?" his voice croaked.

Then a jolt ran through Tony's chest. He gasped, lungs burning with air. He opened his eyes to either Ori or Nori (or was it Dori?) looking down at him, tapping on the glass of the arc reactor.

There was no time to think about the strange experience. Loki's forces were pressing down upon them, and he had his team to find. Why should he have even spared a second's thought on the strange dream that his body in a panicked state created? After all, that's all it was, wasn't it?

 

But then Technovore's attack on Stark Tower happened. When the arc reactor humming in his chest became its target, and it occurred to Tony that maybe he hadn't dreamed it after all.

As great as the new photonic energy shield he made for Cap was (and it was _amazing_ — there were some things that Tony was secretly happy he had outdone his old man on, but this took the prize for best fucking idea ever), it wasn't going to defeat Technovore and Tony knew it. Tony didn't have a choice in the matter, running for it was the best plan.

For a millisecond.

Then the nanomonster pushed Hill aside and knocked Tony on his back. Technovore's freaky mouth tentacles dug into the reactor and the reactor surged. Tony's hips bucked up as his entire body spasmed in pain. The power was draining from the reactor. He could feel the pieces of shrapnel in his chest wiggle around, pushing against the scar tissue.

Then the smell of sulfur overtook him, and Tony once more found himself standing in that red haze, where it was neither hot nor cold. Just... empty.

Except for Steve.

He was still kneeling on the ground, turned away from Tony. But that was impossible, because he knew that Steve was in the basement of Stark Tower, waiting for him. When Tony opened his mouth to call out to him, another figure appeared behind Steve. It was a woman with a large wicked looking helmet. She smirked at Tony before kneeling down and wrapping her arms around Steve. "Back again so soon, Anthony Stark?" She purred. "You always did enjoy such dramatic actions."

"Who are you? Where have you taken Steve?"

"I've not taken him anywhere, he came by his own free will," she said, her arms curling tighter against Steve's back. "As for who I am, with your reckless streak, I am sure you will find out soon enough." She then draped her shawl around Steve and herself.

"What—" Tony started. But before he could say anything else, both the creepy evil lady and Steve vanished. And then he felt a pull on his body. Tony opened his eyes and he was back in Stark Tower. Hill was helping him up, asking if he was okay. 

Right. Technovore. The reactor.

He could think about what he did or didn't see later. There were lives at stake.

 

It wasn't until the next day that Tony remembered to ask Steve while they were "sparring" (or what Tony liked to call the hour sessions of trying to get a hit in while getting his ass handed to him). During their water break, Tony decided to ask, "So, yesterday, during the fight at Stark Tower— you weren't transported to any strange mysterious red mist land with a crazy evil lady draped over you, were you?"

Steve could only blink. "Come again?"

He may have asked it a bit too quickly, but the puzzled look on Steve's face was enough of a confirmation that it hadn't really happened. Shaking his head, Tony slapped Steve on the shoulder. "Never mind."

"Are you okay, Tony?" Steve asked, covering Tony's hand with his own. "You've been acting kind of strange since we got back from Asgard. Anything you want to tell me?"

Tony tried to put his best smile forward. After all, he was an experienced liar if there ever was one. "Everything's peachy."

...

It was only during with the battle with the Kree did Tony realize that something was really wrong with Steve. Not that he couldn’t argue with just attacking the Kree from the get-go, no questions asked— but that wasn't _Steve's_ way of doing things. Steve asked questions while Tony jumped into the fray without thought, not the other way around. But when he brought it up with the other Avengers, they looked as though Tony was speaking another language. The Earth was in danger, why was it wrong for Captain America to throw the first punch? _So many things_ , Tony had wanted to tell them, but he kept quiet.

Shortly after that, Steve left for his little "vacation." He was gone for two weeks without a single word on his whereabouts. It was for the best right? Tony was sure that Steve would recover from, well, whatever his issues were. He was working through shit and Tony knew how tough that could be with a whole bunch of people around daily asking how you were doing. Steve did not want to talk about whatever was bothering him. He had made that clear in Asgard with the snapping, dodging, and changing of subject, tactics that Tony was all too familiar with. 

 

While Steve was gone, Tony prepared a surprise for him. The south wing was a part of the mansion that had remained locked off when the others moved in. In it was a room that contained what was left of Tony's childhood, tossed into boxes haphazardly by himself, because he couldn't entertain the idea of anyone, even Pepper, seeing any of it. They were things that Tony _did not want to talk about_. Old photos, keepsakes, newspapers, and Howard’s collection of Captain America memorabilia—at least the parts that Tony decided were worth keeping. Every time Tony would make the conscious decision to finally get rid of all of it, something would always stop him. Guilt, probably. He never could bring himself to light the match to burn it all out of his life. Instead, he kept it all locked away in the old dusty room. Sorting through all of it wasn't how Tony wanted to spend his free time, or any time at all for that matter, but he thought that the surprise (buried somewhere in the pile of boxes that held what remained of the first 20 years of his life) would help cheer Steve up a little.

Tony could only let himself wait five minutes after Steve returned from his trip to give him the surprise. After knocking once, Tony walked into Steve's room with a big grin on his face. "I got a surprise for you."

"Oh?" Steve was sitting on his bed, arms stretched back to hold his weight. It was like he was presenting himself to Tony, and that was totally _not_ what he was doing, Tony reminded himself, but Goddammit did it sure seem like it.

It took Tony a moment to recover. He straightened his shoulders and cleared his throat before handing a flat square envelope to Steve. "Open it."

Steve sat up straight, giving Tony a strange look, but opened the envelope regardless. He took out the seven inch record with his hand. Steve's eyes grew very wide as he carefully looked at the record's label. "Tony... this is..." 

There was a pull on his heart, and Tony made a mental note to check the readings of the arc reactor later. If it was working properly, then he shouldn't feel like his heart just stopped beating. "I found it in some boxes I had. It's my old man's record of _I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles_. I know Doris Day is a little bit after your time, but I thought—"

"Thank you, Tony," Steve said. "You're always taking care of me. I want you to know, that it means a lot to me." He looked straight into Tony's eyes, seeming to want to say so much more. Tony didn't know what to do. Where was Steve going with this? 

"You're one of closest friends, of course I—" Steve quickly closed the spatial gap between them. He placed his hand on the back of Tony's neck and pulled him in for a kiss.

For a second, every possible alarm went off in Tony's mind and he was frozen in shock. Sweet Jesus Steve was kissing him and it definitely wasn't a dream because his grip on Tony's neck was really starting to hurt, but he'd be damned if he was going to say anything to make it stop. Was _this_ the problem Steve was working through? Because if so, Tony was an absolute idiot. One of them moaned, and Tony was pretty sure it was him. He wrapped his arms around Steve's neck and pulled him in even closer as he deepened the kiss. When Tony pushed his tongue against Steve's mouth, Steve pulled away, a strange smile on his face. "I should've known."

Tony could only blink. "What?"

Shaking his head, Steve's smile grew wider. Cupping Tony's face with his large hands, Steve said, "You are so very predictable, did you know that?"

Tony opened his mouth to say something in return. It would have been something brilliant, he was sure. It wasn't like his brain had just melted into a puddle of goo from that kiss or anything. However, before he could reply, the wall around the door smashed open. Tony jumped away from Steve, making sure there was a good two feet between them. Turning to the broken door, he was about to scream at Hulk for destroying the mansion again, but he saw that it wasn't Hulk standing in the debris. It was Ben Grimm, looking as furious as Tony had ever seen him.

Things moved quickly from there. Grimm didn't hesitate for a moment and jumped towards Steve, who scrambled to get out of the way, turning on the photon shield. Staying clear of the rubble that was thrown around the room, Grimm charged as Tony screamed for JARVIS to activate the suit. Steve threw the shield at Grimm, who reflected it with ease, and then lunged for Steve's throat— pinning him against the wall. The shield ricocheted against Grimm's skin and then into the wall where the projection disappeared. Tony watched, helpless, as Steve flailed his arms and legs trying to get free of Grimm's super grip. " _Where is she_? " Grimm screamed. With his other hand, Ben tore the photonic shield controls off of Steve's arm and threw it to the ground. 

"Ben!" Tony said. His voice was sounding far more panicked than he liked. "Ben, just— calm down!"

It was then that Johnny Storm flew into the room, lit up and looking like he was ready to burn down all of Manhattan. Tony had never felt so relieved to see him. "Johnny, thank Christ. Can you tell Ben to let go of—"

"Crush him, Ben!"

Clearly something had gone awry in Reed's lab once again and turned Grimm and Johnny insane. Or maybe it was alien pollen that made them hone in on American heroes. Tony tried to take a few cautious steps towards them. The suit would be here any second, and then he could at least handle his own against Johnny. In theory, he could contemplate taking on The Thing. He probably wouldn't get far, but at least in the suit Tony would have a chance. Hopefully _someone_ would have noticed that The Thing had just busted through the walls of the mansion with the Human Torch setting the carpets on fire behind him and would come investigate. Depending what was on TV at the moment. Tony put his hands up. "Let's just everyone take a deep breath and think about what they are doing."

" _Where is Suzie?_ " Grimm seethed.

"What are you talking about?" Tony exclaimed. He started slowly walking towards Grimm and Johnny. "You do realize you are _choking_ Captain America."

"Tony!" Tony's head snapped towards where the voice had come from. Reed was standing in what had been the doorway, holding a tablet in one hand, and in the other he had what looked like a modified weapon that they had took from the wreckage the Kree left. "Tony, get away from him!"

"Reed, what the fuck happened? All of your people have gone crazy and are trying to kill Ste—"

Reed aimed the weapon at Steve's head. "That's not Steve Rogers!"

"What?" Tony replied, incredulous. Definitely a space pollen that made them all insane. When this was over, he was never going to let Reed live this one down.

A low sinister laugh emerged from Steve. "It seems that my time here is at an end." Everyone's attention snapped towards Steve as he gave a great yell and pushed Grimm and Johnny down to the ground with an energy attack that Tony knew Steve was incapable of doing. 

So, maybe Reed was talking some sense. 

It was at that point, the Mark VII suit flew into the room and wrapped itself around Tony. Thank God for small miracles. Tony took defensive stance as he waited for JARVIS' analysis to finish. The heart rate, breathing, body temperature, everything read as Steve's normal stats. What the hell was going on? "If you're not Steve, who are you?"

"Disappointed, are you? I was hoping that my little distraction would delay you from discovering the truth. No matter." The fake Steve gave a wan smile before jumping out the window. 

Tony fired a repulsor at the impostor Steve, which knocked him to the ground faster, but did little else (except for maybe piss whoever it was off). Reed leaped for the window, stretching his body so it could be used as a type of parachute to ease his way to the ground. Tony followed, firing the boosters and giving chase. The fake Steve was fast, much faster than Steve was on foot. 

From behind them an energy pulse was fired. It struck the impostor right in the shoulder blade, but the aftershock of the blast was enough to throw Tony's flight off trajectory. Tony, somehow, managed to land on his feet. He turned to see Reed standing with both hands aiming the modified Kree weapon, a stream of smoke coming out from where the energy had come out. Tony turned back to where the impostor was now lying face down on the grass. Steve's strong features had been replaced with greasy looking green skin with markings on the chin. Tony swallowed hard. "Who—" 

Reed walked towards Tony, a somber expression on his face. "Not who— _what_. He's a Skrull."

"What?" 

Reed knelt down next to the Skrull and turned the body over. "I don't know much of the details about them, save for what you and Carol have told me. There was an incident in the lab while I was trying to work with some of the Kree technology, and Susan was knocked unconscious by the blast. Whatever the blast was, it revealed Susan's true form. It was an impostor Skrull, just as this one. I confined it and began to run tests on it. There were trace cosmic energy readings along with massive amounts of some unknown energy which they use for their shape shifting."

"And you used those energy readings to find this one?" Tony said as the faceplate went up. He could see where his story was headed. He could feel a sickness start to grow in his stomach. That _thing_ had kissed him, pretending to be Steve— which should have been a clear indicator right there. Steve would not want to kiss Tony, well, ever, unless it was for mouth to mouth resuscitation or something, and even then Tony had his doubts that Steve would be the one to do it. 

Nodding, Reed said, "With the readings I got when scanning the Avengers' Mansion, it looks like it's been here for weeks."

"What the fuck is going on here?" a voice called from a nearby tree. Clint, _finally_. It was about time someone from the team noticed that mayhem that was going on. Of course, Tony probably could have used his card, but oh well. The battle was over for the moment at least. Clint leapt down from the tree. "I go for out for some range practice and all of the sudden I see Cap jumping out a window and then Reed shooting him, I—" Clint looked down to see the green-skinned alien impostor. "Shit, what happened to Cap?"

"It's not him," Tony said with a sigh. For a guy that had such excellent sight, Clint had some definite hearing problems. 

Over at the mansion, Tony could see Thor standing at Steve's broken window looking down on the scene. "Are you in need of assistance?" Thor's voice boomed. "The flaming man and his rock companion need medical attention!" 

With a huff, Tony looked to Clint. "I'll explain in a moment— can we just get it inside before it wakes up and tries to run again?"

...

Tony could not get to the assembly room fast enough. "JARVIS, I need a scan of earth's surface for the location of Steve Rogers done like fifteen minutes ago." He waved his hand above the keyboard sensors, turning them on, and began to type furiously.

"Sir, I believe he is already in—" 

"That's not him, JARVIS. We've got an alien race on the loose down here that are pretending to be heroes and who have pulled a heck of a trick to fool my systems. T'Challa and Jan are trying to interrogate the impostor Steve now, but I doubt they're going to get anything out of him. I'm inputting the data that Reed gave me on the Skrull to help locate more of the impostors, but while I'm working on that I need you to find Cap. I don't know if there are more pretending to be him out there, so incorporate these factors into your scan. Disregard any bio signatures that match Steve's if the cosmic energy levels are above .0545728."

"Scanning planet's surface for Rogers, Steven."

When he finished inputting the data Reed provided, Tony started going through weeks of the mansion's security footage in fast forward to try and determine when the switch had been made. Was it before Asgard? During the Loki debacle? Maybe after? All this time Tony had assumed that Steve acting strange was him dealing with issues. How could he have not realized that Steve wasn't _Steve_? 

How long had this impostor been living under his roof without him knowing?

He didn't even want to start to think about the fact that he had made out with that... doppelgänger. 

"JARVIS pause the security footage and back it up to 17.34.800." The footage rewound. "Pause it!" And there it was from their little "agreement" with Zemo a few weeks prior. The cameras had captured Steve looming over Zemo, looking nothing like the Captain America Tony knew. The shadows under Steve's eyes made a chill run down Tony's spine. The shadow, which towered over everything in that room, was not Steve’s shadow. It was something very not human.

The computer system beeped. "Rogers, Steven: bio signature not found," JARVIS reported. 

"Check again, JARVIS," Tony implored. He was finding it very hard to remain standing. He fell into the chair beside him and pushed his hands through his hair. "Extend search to thirty kilometers above and below the earth's surface, and any spacecraft that we have taps into. That even means S.W.O.R.D.'s little fortress of doom."

"Sir, I've already factored—"

Tony looked up, glaring at the computer. "Check. Again." Turning his attention back to the video feed, Tony stared at the image of Skrull Steve glaring. Tony was trembling, but if asked, he would not be able to say why. It was some kind of combination of fear and anger that he hadn't felt since Obie stole the arc reactor from his chest. 

Anger at himself for being so careless.

Fear of what could have happened to Steve. 

After a few minutes, the sound of the computer beeping echoed through the room once more.

"Rogers, Steven: bio signature not found."

...

Tony sat in the dark on Steve's bed, amongst the rubble left over from the afternoon's fight. Tony had found the bag of Steve's broken shield thrown in a corner, forgotten since their trip to Asgard. He sat it beside him on the bed, holding one of the larger shield pieces. Mindlessly, he turned the piece over in his hands. Steve had neglected the shield all this time. That should have been a red flag right there. It was a punch in the gut that Tony hadn't noticed it. 

What else had he missed? He still wouldn't know if Ben hadn't come charging in like he had. That creature in the basement would be in front of them all, still pretending to be Steve. Acting like Steve. Smiling like Steve. Fooling them all. And Tony would— his mind flashed to that kiss. God, how did he not realize?

Jan hovered at the broken doorway for a moment before returning to full size. "Tony?" she asked, taking a few steps toward him. 

"Jan!" Tony jerked his head up to look at her. "Did you get anything?"

She shrugged. "Not much other than the usual. _The Skrull will be the end of mankind, your planet will fall_ , blah blah. You'd think aliens would have a more original spiel than the bad guys on earth. I guess evil learns all their lines from the same book no matter where in the universe they're from. Carol's on her way to see if she can get anything out of him using her methods." Jan walked towards Tony as she spoke, stopping a foot in front of him. "Any luck on your end?"

Tony's head sank back down. He let his attention fall back to the shield in his hands. "I had JARVIS scan the planet for Steve," he mumbled quietly. "He isn't anywhere below, above, or on the planet Earth. Did that thing say anything about where they are keeping Steve?"

"The only thing he would confirm is when he took Steve's place, he shot him." Jan sat on the bed next to him, putting an arm around his shoulder as she did so. "I'm sorry."

Shaking his head, Tony asked, "What's to be sorry about?"

"Tony—"

He pulled away from Jan's arm. "I'm going to find him, Jan. He's just not going to make it easy for me. Not that Steve ever made anything easy for me, uh ever."

"Tony," she said, her voice cracking. "You need to accept the possibility that Cap may be—"

"May be what, Jan?" Tony asked. He snapped his head towards her and glared. " _Dead_? Are you kidding? This is Captain fucking America we are talking about! He was buried in ice for seventy years. He's not someone who would allow some asshole aliens to kill him so easily. And under my roof, no less."

Raising an eyebrow, Jan replied, "Okay then. Where is he, if he's not on Earth?"

"I'm working on it." Tony looked down to the shield fragment in his hand. 

"I know this is hard for you, Tony. I know what Steve—"

"Tread very carefully here, Jan," Tony warned. "I'm not in the mood."

"I'm not teasing! I'm speaking to you as an old friend— an old friend who knows when you are smiling for the cameras and when you aren't pretending," she said, putting her hand gently on Tony's back. "I know you cared for him."

Already with the past tense? They hadn't even confirmed there was a body, and she was already talking about Steve as if he were gone forever. Tony's stomach clenched. "You don't know what you're talking about, okay?" Tony said, pushing himself off of the bed, away from Jan, throwing the shield remnants on the ground. "Steve is one of my best friends! He's part of our team."

"And— you cared about him."

Growling, Tony pushed his hands through his hair. "Goddammit, stop talking about him like he's already gone! I'll find him, okay? I've—" Tony froze. He thought of the red mists, the smell of sulfur, and Steve's figure. Maybe it wasn't a dream. Maybe Steve—

Jan stood up from the bed. "What? What is it?"

But Tony was already lost in his own thoughts. 

On both occasions he had seen Steve in that place—

Tony was already out the door and running to his workshop as Jan called after him. Tony didn't even hear her voice. His head was already running calculations, possible outcomes, and trying to form a plan. 

He knew how he could find Steve.

...

"I am well aware why the emergency protocols are in place, JARVIS. I put them there. But I still want to override them." Tony typed a few more commands into the computer console. It wouldn't do for JARVIS to disregard his instructions, so at least writing in a code that would ensure that his wishes were followed would be the better move. That didn't stop JARVIS from trying to talk him out of creating the code.

"Sir—"

"Just ten minutes, JARVIS," Tony argued. "After ten minutes, you can contact anyone your little AI heart desires. The Avengers, Pepper, Rhodey, Keyser Söze— I don't care. But I need at least ten minutes." It was a simple enough plan that seemed the most logical. While he preferred having more than two 'experiments' to be sure of this particular outcome, there was no time to wait for the Avengers to be attacked again. So creating the same variables in a controlled environment seemed the safest and most time efficient thing to do. Not the most responsible, sure, but the efficiency thing was pretty damn important at this point.

"The calculated time that the shrapnel shards will begin to dislodge is less than 8.567 minutes. If I were to wait ten minutes—"

"Fine," Tony rolled his eyes. "Five minutes then. The last two times I saw him—"

"—as I have stated previously, in those instances a strong case could be made for hallucinations of the brain caused by—”

"—the reactor was overloading, but it was too brief a time to confirm anything. I need time, JARVIS. This way more time will be allotted without turning the core to a melted crayon. We really don't have to go through the process of making vibranium again in the lab, do we? I mean, sure, I guess I could ask T'Challa to give me some to replace the melted husk I'd have left, but somehow I don't think he will."

"At least discuss the circumstances with the Avengers before—"

"No, no, no," Tony said, finishing the last part of the code. He spun around in his chair and attached a few wires to his chest to monitor heart rate, and a clip over his finger to check for oxygen in the blood. He made sure his stats were clearly visible on the projector, so when whoever JARVIS contacted got there, they would not waste a moment's time in getting things... well... back and running. "They wouldn't even let me try to do this, so nope, not waiting, not discussing. Who knows what danger Steve is in and the longer we wait—"

"But there is no guarantee that your endeavor will succeed. There is a high percentage that no one will—"

"JARVIS." 

"Sir?"

"When has a big risk ever scared me?" Without ceremony, Tony clicked the arc reactor out of his chest and placed it on the computer console. "Start the countdown," he said, his voice cracking as he spoke. Tony braced the console to help him stand. Not that it mattered, because his legs gave out a moment later and he found himself curled on the floor. 

During the few times that Tony had experienced the arc reactor being removed from his chest, the sharp pain that shot through his lungs the moment the warm glow of the reactor was gone was always the worst. There was a sense of doom, not knowing if that glow would ever return. This time, however, Tony welcomed the pain as the whiteness overtook his vision. It meant that he was not far from finding Steve.


	2. Chapter 2

Death was a constant companion for most of Steve Rogers' life. It was never something that he became comfortable with, never something that he could make himself get used to. His mother and father were both taken from him before he was even an adult and he had been helpless to prevent their passing. In the war, death loomed over all of them like a hawk waiting to strike. His men often boasted that Captain America feared nothing, but Steve was no fool— he feared death. Super serum or no, death claimed everyone in the end. The serum had only postponed it for a while. 

He looked into the eyes of his doppelgänger; saw the gun as it fired. Steve felt his body fall to the floor, and he had no control over it. The doppelgänger loomed over him, a wicked grin on his face, as Steve's eyes closed. As his world vanished away into whiteness, he could hear his own voice and others he had not heard before, swirling around him until they too vanished.

It was a pathetic end for Captain America, but Steve Rogers knew better than anyone that you didn't have a choice in the matter when it came to your own death.

The white haze turned red, and then faded black. Steve's limbs became heavy. His eyes were closed and refused to open. Death seemed more peaceful than he imagined. When it took his mother, there was moaning, coughing, and so much blood. He felt as if he were falling into a deep sleep. He couldn't even feel pain where he was shot.

There was a hand pushing through his hair. He could hear a soft voice humming a familiar tune. It echoed through the emptiness, rattling memories. Of a conversation he had with Tony. Kind, kind, Tony, who was only trying to help. But once a man knows that death is upon him, there is no need to beg for assistance. After making a deal with the she-devil, so to speak, he knew he was going to die. 

"Then like my dreams they fade and die", a distant voice sang. It was a voice Steve knew achingly well. She had sung that song in a dark pub one lonely night, months before falling into the ice. She said it reminded her of Steve. He laughed at that, wondering why she thought Captain America was so helpless. But it wasn't Captain America she was talking about.

"Peggy", he tried to say. 

"Shhh," Peggy cooed. "Rest now, Steven. You've been fighting for so long." Her voice sounded closer now, clearer. As if someone had adjusted a radio to the perfect setting. "Rest. Rest," she said.

As hard as he tried, Steve could not open his eyes. He wanted to see her face. To see her smiling down at him, so he could pretend that nothing happened— that it was still 1943, he was never trapped in the ice and his world was still as he remembered it. Steve was good at denial. He had been living in it since he had been found in the ice. As much as he smiled and kept the good soldier routine going, inside he wanted to lay down his shield. It was no longer his time.

But America, no the world, needed him.

Needed Captain America.

Still needed him, in fact. The fight was far from over. Who would take up his shield now?

His shield that was in pieces.

Peggy began to sing again, picking up in the song where she had left off. Steve let himself be consumed by her voice. 

"Cap!" a voice called. It sounded so far away, like a faint echo down a long empty hallway. "Cap!"

The tune Peggy was singing slowly became louder. It was drowning out the new voice. Her hand began to press harder against Steve's scalp to the point of almost painful.

" _Steve!_ " the voice implored. It sounded closer now, but still echoing.

Steve recognized the voice. "Tony?" He murmured, trying to see what was going on. If he was dead, then how could Tony be calling to him?

A hand was placed over his eyes. Peggy stopped mid-verse. "No Steven," her voice implored. "You can't open your eyes. You will end it all. Just rest. Then the two of us can stay like this. Forever."

Tony's voice was breaking through. " _Look at me!_ I'm here to take you home!"

Mustering all the strength he could, Steve opened his eyes. With a sigh, Peggy removed her hand. "Always the fight first. One day you will learn to put yourself first."

Their surroundings were stained red. Steve's head was in Peggy's lap as they were seated in a never ending field of poppies. The sun hung low in the sky, colored a deep red that reminded Steve all too much of fresh blood. Surrounding the sun were clusters of sinister looking gaseous clouds. A chill ran up Steve's spine as he remembered that the clouds in Niflheim had looked quite similar. Slowly sitting up, Steve looked to Peggy. Her mouth was drawn in a sad smile. He reached out to touch her face, but his hand went straight through her.

" _Steve, wake up!_ "

Steve's head snapped in the direction Tony's voice was calling. The field of poppies, Peggy, all of it, vanished in the blink of an eye. Steve was at the top of a long set of stone stairs, kneeling next to a large throne made of human bones. "Tony?" Steve's voice croaked. It sounded as though he hadn't used it in weeks. Gathering his surroundings, he saw that Tony was standing at the foot of the staircase, looking very pale and harried. There were deep shadows under Tony's eyes, the paleness of his skin making them all the more predominant. Something pulled in Steve's chest. He had never seen Tony in such a state. 

"Steve!" Tony's face lit up. The expression of relief washed over his face. He looked even sicker when he smiled.

"Tony, what are you—"

Behind Steve, there was a frustrated growl. Steve looked up to realize his head had been resting on Hela's lap. He recoiled from the throne like it had electrocuted him. Scowling, Hela rose from her throne. She threw an energy blast at Tony. Steve had enough time to scream "No!" before Tony vanished into nothingness.

"Meddlesome fool," Hela remarked, clenching her fists.

Without second thought, Steve threw himself at Hela. "What did you do to Tony?" he growled as he tried to tackle her.

Hela vanished, and Steve fell onto the stone stairs. After a short tumble, he gathered himself together and pushed himself to standing. Hela reappeared looming over Steve. "I sent him on his way," she said. "He has already caused enough destruction. Although I must admit his tenacity is as impressive as yours. It takes a strong will to break through my spell." With an evil smirk she added, "He will join us soon enough, not to worry."

"If you harm Tony—" Steve warned.

Laughing, Hela vanished and appeared back on her throne. "Harm him? I do not need to harm him, Steven. Anthony is quite capable of doing that on his own. I will simply make him part of my collection," she said, waving her hand in the air to gesture at the large emerald gems floating in the air. Steve could see the souls trapped inside of them. The look of sheer terror on each face was unsettling to say the least. The thought of Tony being trapped like that— 

He could not let that happen. 

Clenching his teeth, Steve replied, "The deal was you got me. _Only_ me." 

"It will not be me that brings Anthony to Niflheim," Hela added with a hint of satisfaction. "But rather you, Steven— his quest to free you from my realm will be the death of him."

"Why would he want to free me? I'm dead."

Hela stared at Steve for a long moment before breaking into fit of sinister laughter. 

"Did I say something funny?"

"Oh verily. Could it be that even now you do not realize the truth? Perhaps if you had shared our agreement with your Avengers, with Anthony, he would not be racing to your aid now. But that would require reaching out to them. To him." 

Steve shifted his weight, holding back his frustration. It was all he could do to not attack her outright until he had a better understanding of the current situation and how much control she had over this world. If what she said could be trusted, and Tony was coming, the last thing Steve needed was to be on her bad side. He would have to make another bargain with her, to prevent Tony from even entering Niflheim. But what did Steve have left to even offer her? She already had his soul. "I need to talk to Tony. I'll do whatever you ask, just _please_ , let me stop this."

"He is many worlds away now," Hela said, disinterested in where this thread of conversation was going. "The only way you would be able to communicate with him is to return to Midgard, which I have no reason to allow you to do. I have already collected the spoils, as it were."

Steve let out a heavy sigh. "There must be something."

Hela hummed an amused sound. "You have nothing left to offer me, Steven Rogers. After all, despite all your qualities, you are still mortal." After a beat she amended, " _Were_ mortal."

"A service then?" Steve suggested after a moment. "Something I can do to help you, and then you return the favor by helping me."

For a few moments, Steve thought she was going to turn him away. Turn him away and make him suffer all eternity with the knowledge that he had lead one of his closest friends into the land of the dead with poor intentions. 

But then Hela smiled and nodded. "Perhaps there is something you can assist me with. When Loki escapes from the Midgard Serpant, and he will, his sights will once again turn to taking back what he had gained, which includes my realm. I will need something that will give me the power to protect my domain." She waved her hand in the air beside her. A small black flame-shape appeared in thin-air. Steve took a precautionary step back. The shape flattened and blurred into a picture of the roots of an enormous tree that glowed a faint blue. It reminded Steve of the tree that Loki fed on in Odin's palace. A gargantuan snake was wrapped around the roots, feeding on them. The glow from the tree spread through the snake, making it impossible to see where the snake began and the tree ended. "This is Yggdrasill, the tree from which everything is formed. On the roots of the tree lives the Nidhogg. Bring me one of his fangs. If you do that, I will consider our previous agreement void."

Steve could feel his eye twitch. "Why?" 

"Within one of Nidhogg's fangs is the power of thousands of souls. It will give me the capacity to fulfill my desires. I regard that as an even trade for yours, Steven Rogers."

"I agree to your terms," Steve replied. Hela smiled down at Steve. It couldn't be that easy, Steve knew. If it had been easy, then she would have taken the fang herself. It had to be a trap. But if it meant being able to stop Tony from coming to Niflheim, he had to try. "Where can I find this snake?"

Hela stood from her throne and the picture of the tree vanished. She pointed to the right of them into the red haze of nothingness. "At the edge of the world, you will find Yggdrasill where the Nidhogg feeds." She let out a short laugh. From behind her, an enormous black hound appeared and nuzzled against her side. Giving the hound a loving pat on the head, she added, "I am not sure whether I wish to see you succeed or fail, Steven Rogers. But then again, I suppose I will benefit either way."

Without ceremony or any reply, Steve started walking in the direction Hela had indicated. 

Into the vast hazy red void.

...

During the war Steve had done his fair share of traveling on foot. While he had started as a kid from Brooklyn, Steve learned fast how to get his bearings in a forest, and how to be able to tell which direction he was traveling in despite time of day or weather conditions.

None of that prepared him for Niflheim. There was nothing that could be used to track how far he had traveled, or even how long, for there was no sun to set or rise. It seemed as if he had been walking for hours, but it could have been days. He tried drawing markers in the dirt to track how far he had gone, but he quickly learned that the constant breeze would wipe it away within seconds. 

Steve thought that being dead meant that he wouldn't get tired, but that wasn't the case. He took brief respites, stopping only long enough to rest his legs. Sleeping was not an option. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw the field of poppies again. He couldn't take a risk of being pulled into Hela's illusions. His only choice was to continue to walk and look for the edge of the world. 

To pass the time, Steve found himself humming a familiar tune. 

Until a voice echoed in the silence, making Steve stop dead in his tracks.

"Hey there, Cap."

For a terrifying moment, Steve had thought it was Tony. It had the same cockiness as Tony, but the voice was lower, the Brooklyn accent thicker. Steve turned around and was face to face with none other than Howard Stark. He was just as Steve remembered him, which shouldn't have been possible, because Howard died many, many years after Steve went into the ice. He had the same cocksure smile that he always had on his face, holding himself like he owned the world and dammit if he wasn't going to prove it to everyone. 

When Steve had first met Tony, he thought that trait had actually been hereditary. But Steve realized that while Howard held that belief to his core, Tony wore it more as a shield to prevent the world from being able to see the real Tony Stark.

"H-Howard," Steve said, taking a small step towards him. He was unsure of what to say. It wasn't like Steve could ask why Howard was there— Howard was dead. Howard had been dead for a long time. 

Howard broke out in a smile. "Speechless to see me?"

"No I—" Steve looked to his side, trying to remember the direction that he had been facing. With no landmarks to help him keep track of where he was, it was going to be easy to get lost fast. He couldn't afford to lose his bearings. It was unlikely Hela would give him a second chance. Perhaps that was her plan— to distract him to the point of forgetting where he was. He couldn't give her that satisfaction. "I just... have to hurry, Howard. Tony's in danger and I-"

Howard let out an amused snort. "When is that boy not in danger? He thinks he needs to be creating chaos constantly so people don't forget about him. It made him a damn handful when he was young." Steve didn't have anything to say to that. He looked away, willing himself to start moving again. He even managed to take a step forward, but then Howard continued, "I bet he's already put you in danger by 'accident' at least three times since you've met him. And he worshipped you. You can imagine what he put me through. That's why I shipped him off as soon as he was old enough— made him someone else's problem."

It was just a trick; an illusion of Hela's to distract him. Steve knew it had to be. But that didn't stop him from balling his fists at his sides. Not that he could have harmed Howard anyway. Howard was dead. And if he didn't hurry, Tony would be too. "That was your loss, Howard. From what I've learned in my time with Tony, I'm sure he was a great kid. And you missed out on it." Pressing his lips together, Steve gave Howard a hard stare before heading back in what Steve hoped was the right direction. 

Howard followed. "But he was nothing compared to Captain America. You... you were my greatest creation, Cap."

Steve halted in mid-step. "You can't... Tony's your son. How could you say something like that?"

With a shrug, Howard replied, "Easily. There's no point in denying the truth. You've met Tony. You know you are a better man."

Now Steve turned around to face Howard again. He couldn't help himself. For a moment he completely forgot about the task at hand, about Hela, about everything, except Tony. Steve wasn't aware of Tony's relationship with his father. It was something never discussed. Tony still had things that belonged to his father, because he still had the picture of Steve, Howard and Bucky. But the day they found him in the ice, Jan pulled Steve aside and said something to the likes of 'Yeah I know you and Howard knew each other, but don't bring Howard up with Tony. It won't end well.' Tony had mentioned his father a few times, and while they had never been happy memories, they were never... this. 

Steve looked down at Howard. "You're a fool if you believe that, Howard. After all the amazing things Tony has done, is still doing. How can you think that I am the better man? I was nothing but a scrawny kid from Brooklyn until the serum." Shrugging, Steve added, "Yes, now I can fight, and take commands like a soldier, but Tony— Tony _creates_. He builds while we destroyed. He thinks beyond the box in ways that I can't even begin to understand. I'm not a better man than he is, not by far."

Howard smirked. "Well, I'll be damned. The boy's dream has come true. The man he worshipped his entire life is the one person who actually approves of him." 

Furrowing his brow, Steve said, "I don't understand. How can you be so glib about your son?"

"You are kidding, right?" Howard stared for a moment, and then broke into a howl of laughter. 

Steve could only glare. "You were a good man, Howard. What happened to you?"

Thankfully, the laughing stopped. The expression on Howard's face switched to a solemn one. As it did, Steve watched as Howard's face age to what Steve could only assume what he looked like when he died. His hair streaked with grey at the temples, and deep lines around his eyes, mouth and forehead. The playful Howard he had just seen, the man on top of the world, disappeared, leaving nothing but a stern looking shell of the Howard Steve once knew. He looked more like Tony now, and that fact only made the ache in Steve's heart worse. This was the man that Tony did not want to be associated with, refused to mention out loud unless forced. Looking into the coldness of the older Howard's eyes, Steve could understand why. "Life happened, Cap." Howard said, his voice becoming more and more haggard as he spoke. "And you missed it. If you hadn't disappeared, you could have been there for Tony. For me. But you weren't."

"Howard—" Steve's eyes grew wide.

"You left us. You abandoned the world. The great Captain America... Who are you to judge?"

His words punched him in the gut. Suddenly Steve felt as though he was the ordinary Steve once more— the skinny art student, who was weak and helpless. When he tried to say something in retaliation, nothing came out except faltering sounds. He cleared his throat. "I didn't— Howard, I didn't—" Steve reached out and his hand went through Howard. And then Steve remembered. Hela. Niflheim. The serpent. Hela was trying to distract him, and it had worked perfectly. Steve took a step back, looking at Howard with wide eyes as he vanished, a smirk on his lips. 

"Steve!" 

"Tony?" Steve's head whirled around, looking for the source of the voice. 

Instead of Tony, there was an immense sinister looking black hound within arm's reach, growling at him. It was the same hound that he had seen with Hela, the green glowing eyes and a mouth full of fangs that were longer than Steve's head. Instinctively, Steve went for his shield, only to find it wasn't there. He faltered for a moment, just as the hound was readying his attack.

But before Steve could react, another yell echoed in the nothingness. A figure appeared, tackling the creature. Steve saw a flash of gold and red before the hound and a man tumbled to the ground. For a dread moment, Steve thought it was Tony. His breath caught in his throat. It wasn't possible. Tony was already in Niflheim and Steve was too late to save him. 

But the man fighting the creature wielded a large sword and shield, and had a dark full beard. Steve felt the panic ease. The stranger thrust the sword into the beast and it let out a yelp of pain. It ran away as fast as it could, vanishing after a few yards. Steve turned to the stranger, who was pushing himself up to standing. There was a solemn look on his face, showing no indication that he had just fought off a large hound. He didn't even seem winded.

"Thank you," Steve said, a little thrown.

"It looks as though Hela has her sights set on you, mortal," the man said, adjusting his golden cape. "If Garm is watching you that closely, that means death is upon you."

"Garm?"

"That is the name of Hela's hound," the man explained. "And a fearsome beast it is. It will not remain scared for long. You should be on your way. Modgud's bridge is not far from here."

"How can death be looking for me when I'm already dead?" Steve asked.

The stranger stared hard at Steve, as if he could see through him. It was the same stare Thor had a tendency to do when he was analyzing an opponent. After a moment, he shrugged. "Mortals. Your arrogance is something I never could understand. If you are dead, why do you roam Niflheim free?"

Hesitating for a moment, Steve decided it would be easiest to not talk about his arrangement with Hela. "I am looking for a large tree," he offered.

The stranger readied his sword, glaring at Steve now. "What business do you have with Yggdrasill? If you are seeking to harm it in any way, I will strike you down where you stand, mortal. The Nine Realms are far more important than any petty needs you may have."

The last thing Steve wanted to find out was if he could still be wounded in the land of the dead. "I made an arrangement with Hela," Steve confessed. "If I bring her the fang of the snake that feeds off the tree, then she will help me."

"Hela helps no man." The stranger kept his sword at the ready.

"I'm beginning to realize that," Steve replied with a sigh. "But at this point, I really don't care. I need to get home. I can only do that if Hela sends me there."

Scoffing, the stranger shook his head. "You would face the fearsome beast that is Nidhogg? If he is successful in defeating you, he will devour your soul, and you will never be able to escape Niflheim."

"I have to try," Steve insisted. "I need to stop Tony from following me into this place, and I can only do that if I am back on Earth."

At this, the man raised an eyebrow. "Tony is your companion?"

"A friend," Steve corrected.

Lowering his sword, the stranger shook his head. "He would throw his own life away to be beside you? That is much more than a friend. It is a dangerous venture to come to Niflheim—"

"That's why I have to stop him." He may have said that less politely than he should have. What did this... person care about any of this? "It's a long story, but this isn't my first time in Niflheim. Hela let me go before, with a promise she would have my soul if I fell in battle. And, well, here I am as promised. But Tony doesn't know that, and if he comes here trying to save me... that means..." Steve's voice cracked. No, that was not an option. He was going to stop Tony before he did anything irreversible. "I can't let that happen."

A strange expression formed on the stranger's face. "And so you would risk your eternal soul to ensure he remains oblivious? Do you think that fair?"

"Not oblivious. Safe." The stranger raised an eyebrow. But Steve couldn't lose any more time. "Thank you for saving me, but I really have to be on my way." Knowing Tony, he had already hatched some new scheme to get to Niflheim, so Steve was definitely working against the clock. A Tony-never-sleeps-and-has-no-account-for-self-preservation clock, which would leave him only so much time to find the snake at the edge of the world. Steve offered his hand to the stranger.

The stranger looked at Steve's hand and then back to his face. "You will need a weapon." Steve could only blink. Of course he would need a weapon. Well, he'd done bare-handed fighting before. How well that would go up against a snake, he wasn't sure. His weapon was at home, in pieces. And if he couldn't have his shield— 

The stranger pushed his sword into Steve's offered hand. "Take this, mortal—"

"Steve," he offered. "My name is Steve Rogers. And I can't take this from you. You'd be unarmed. That Garm thing is still out there—"

With a shake of his head, the stranger said, "I do not fear the Garm. There are worse things in this world than death." As he spoke, he reached up and rubbed his hand across the very ornate golden necklace around his neck. "Much worse."

"How about your shield instead?" Steve asked, pushing the sword back into the stranger's grasp.

Giving Steve an odd look, the stranger handed over his shield instead. "A shield has its uses no doubt, but are you sure it is the only thing you want to take into the battle with the Nidhogg? It is a cunning creature and you will need every advantage to defeat it."

Smiling, Steve nodded as he slid the shield over his arm. It was a different weight than he was used to; heavier, and more bulky because of the spikes. But he felt less exposed now. "It's the only thing I need in a fight," he replied.

"You are a strange one, mortal," the stranger nodded in return. "Even in battle, your first instinct is to protect. It would be most interesting to see how that fairs for you. If you will have me, I shall accompany you to Yggdrasill."

"Thank you, err—" Steve's ears pinked. "I don't believe I got your name."

The stranger slipped his sword back into the sheath that was sitting by his hip. "My name is Odr," he replied sternly. 

"Thank you, Odr." 

"While your gratitude is appreciated, we must make haste."

Steve turned towards the direction he thought he had been headed. Or was it the other way? It was impossible to tell now after getting turned around so much. Looking over to Odr, nervously, Steve asked, "You wouldn't know what direction this tree is in, would you?"

Odr closed his eyes and knelt, placing his right hand before him on the ground. After a moment, his eyes snapped open. "The tree is that way," he said, pointing to his left. "There is more than a day's journey still ahead. Once the snow begins to fall, Yggdrasill is not far away. However, speed is of the upmost importance. The longer you remain in Niflheim, the more likely you will succumb to the Garm."

Blinking, Steve asked, "What about you? Aren't you worried?"

"I do not fear death," Odr replied, closing his eyes. "I would welcome her."


	3. Chapter 3

An excruciatingly painful jolt went through Tony's body as the energy blast hit him. From somewhere close he could hear the click and the hum of the arc reactor being returned to his chest. His body flailed in a ripple pattern, starting from his chest and moving outward. 

He was home. 

There was a hand pushing through his hair. "Tony?"

The world was too blurry to open his eyes, but when did that ever stop Tony? He saw in quadruples. Blinking a few times, he opened his eyes wide to try to straighten out his vision. It didn't help much. There was a blonde blur hovering over him. "Steve?" Tony asked, grabbing the hand that was touching him. His voice sounded more desperate then he meant, but hey he wasn't really in total control of his body yet. Oh please say it had worked. Please.

"No, Tony, it's _Carol_." Of course it was Carol. Things never were that easy for him. Carol grabbed his hand and squeezed it a little too tight, but Tony couldn't find it in him to complain. He knew what happened to him when the arc reactor was out for too long. "You scared us half to death." She had that tone in her voice. Tony had known Carol for only a few weeks, but he had already become pretty familiar with that tone. It was very close to Pepper's tone when he had done something very stupid. "What were you even thinking? Wait, don't even say anything, because clearly you were not thinking, but you are supposed to be the genius here Tony and—"

The process of his plan quickly came back to him. The removing of the arc reactor, the pain, the whiteness and then... "I found Steve!" Tony exclaimed. "We have to help him!" He tried to sit up, but Carol held him in place.

"Woah, slow down there, tiger." That was Jan's voice. Tony blinked a few times again, turning in the direction her voice was coming from. She was normal size, kneeling on Tony's other side. "You found Steve _where_? We found you lying on the floor, not moving due to the fact you _took your arc reactor out of your chest on purpose_. So unless Steve's under the table—"

The arc reactor was humming loudly throughout his body as it compensated for the time it was out of his chest. Tony could feel the shrapnel pushing back to its original resting place. "I'm not sure where he is, but I found him." After a moment, he added, "Okay, that sounded better in my head."

Tightening her grip on his hand, Carol said, "Tony, maybe we should go to the medical lab and—"

"Oh Jesus," Tony rolled his eyes and tried to sit up again. Carol still would not let him move. "Just because I was out cold on the floor does not mean I need the patronizing act. There is a reason for everything, including taking out the arc reactor. JARVIS got to you in time didn't he?"

"They arrived within 6.3 minutes, sir." JARVIS chimed in helpfully, although he too sounded a bit annoyed or worried, Tony wasn't sure which, but that was pretty much a constant state with JARVIS when dealing with Tony's brilliant ideas. "And may I say, sir, that you gave a spectacular impression of a fish out of water in the interim."

Tony snorted. "Anyway, I'm fine, okay? It wasn't the first time I've had the arc reactor pulled out of me, and this time it was voluntary! Seriously, everything is peachy!" From the dubious looks Carol and Jan exchanged, it seemed neither was very reassured. Tony let out a sigh. "Just get the team together. We need to figure out a plan of action that hopefully doesn't involve a repeat performance."

"Plan of action for what?" Jan crossed her arms against her chest. "Just so you know, since you've woken up, nothing you've said has made sense, Tony. And I'm used to your insane babble."

Tony bit back a growl of frustration. Why were they being so purposefully obtuse? Maybe if he used small words. "We're going to save Steve. He's being held captive by a crazy S&M lady with a helmet that puts Loki's to shame. No, I don't know where he is—" talking over Carol as she opened her mouth. "But when has a small detail like that ever stopped us before? I know what the place looks like, and from JARVIS' scans, I know it's not on Earth. It's a starting point, ladies. I can't have all the answers all the time." Tony's eyes widened as the words left his mouth.

_Time._

Time was definitely a factor in this equation. He couldn't have been there six minutes. It felt like it was just a few seconds. He could only call out to Steve, and then he was gone again. Time dilation meant a slew of possibilities, but considering the blast the S&M woman attacked him with... Tony was loathed to admit that magic factoring into this was highly probable; Occam's razor, and all that. 

And where had they been recently that dealt with a lot of magic?

"Have everyone meet me down here in an hour," Tony insisted. He tapped Carol on the hand that was holding him down. "Let me get up, I have some research to do and a Cap to find."

Hesitantly, Carol removed her hand and helped Tony stand up. "If the Skrulls are already on Earth—"

"The Skrulls have been here for weeks, maybe months, according to Reed," Tony huffed as he turned towards the computer console. Screens appeared in front of him as he began running several searches for possible clues to Steve's location. "While I agree with you that yeah, they need to be found and taken care of, we also can't leave Steve alone in that God forsaken place longer, okay? Besides, we're going to need Cap's help if we have any chance in hell defeating the Skrulls. You know it and I know it."

Jan placed her hand on his shoulder. "Tony—" Her voice was really starting to grate on his nerves.

Tony slammed both hands into the computer console. "Can you possibly understand that he's been in that place for weeks? All alone? While we've been here none the wiser? We've been talking to that— _thing_ in the basement like he was—" Tony closed his eyes in an effort to control how much he was trembling. There had been more than talking between him and the Skrull Steve, and it sickened him to his stomach when he thought about it.

"Alright Tony," Carol said with a sigh. "We'll get everyone assembled and meet back here in an hour. But you are going to have to give us something more solid. I want to get Captain America back too, but you have to remember, he wouldn't want us to risk the safety of the world in order to save him." Nudging Jan in the back, Carol nodded to the door.

Tony was already so wrapped up in the research on the screens glowing before him, he didn't even notice the two leave.

"JARVIS, I want all data you have on the Avengers leading up to, during, and after Loki's attack. And find me a reputable source for reading up on Norse mythology."

"Sir?"

"If he's not on earth, then we'll have to start looking in other places. Best to start from a place we just came from."

...

True to their word, Jan and Carol managed to gather the Avengers in the assembly room, save for Hulk, who was busy watching their new Skrull captive. Each member looked more skeptical than the next when Tony, still recovering from the missing arc reactor, stood up and cleared his throat. "Well now that you are all here, and probably think I've completely lost it if Jan or Carol told you anything about what's happened, I guess I'll get started—JARVIS, bring up the map." An ornate map of the Nordic Nine Realms took over the large projector, filling the room with a dim white glow. "Okay, for the record, just in case I haven't made it clear enough in the past: I really hate magic. Like seriously. So you can imagine how much it hurts my soul to tell you that I think that Steve is trapped in one of the other Norse Realms."

"You have some proof of this, friend Stark?" Thor asked, stepping forward.

From the look on her face, Jan still thought Tony was crazy. "But we all came back together, Tony. There's no way that the Skrull changed Steve out when—"

"We were all separated," Tony finished. "And if you recall, Steve wasn't really willing to share anything about what happened to him. But no, you're right Jan, I don't think the switch happened during the fight with Loki. I mean, it's possible. But I've been watching the security footage from the last few weeks, now that I know to look for something, it seems it happened after."

"Then why do you believe that Steven is still there?" T'Challa asked, crossing his arms.

"Because I've seen him," Tony said, adamantly. "I saw him when I used the arc reactor to blast away the monster in Nidavellir, and I've seen him twice now since we saved Asgard, when I was in a life or death situation. All in the same place." With a deep sigh, Tony recounted each experience, in as much detail as he could— from the piercing air, to the crazy helmeted lady that seemed to have Steve under a spell— if only to convince his teammates that it actually happened.

When he was done, they still looked skeptical. "Look, I know how it sounds. JARVIS still insists that it's all been in my head, but I can tell you— the place where Cap is? It's real. And I think I may have figured out where it is." He punched a button on the computer console, and pictures of the Avengers appeared on the screen. "When we split to investigate the Norn stones, each of us was teleported, right? Well, I've been doing some reading up on the Nine Realms. With the exception of Jan and Hank, who were at the same stone, each of us went to a different world. Clint was in Alfheim with his elves." The picture of Clint moved to the location of Alfheim on the map.

"Again, not _my_ elves, Stark. Watch it."

"I went to Nidavellir, Thor went home to Asgard, Jan and Hank went to Jotunheim," as Tony named off the locations, each of the Avengers' pictures moved to the location they traveled to on the display map. "Thor, you said that it sounded like T'Challa had been to Svartalheim?"

"The realm of the dark elves, yes," Thor nodded.

"And from what the Warriors Three told us, Hulk was found in Vanaheim. Which leaves Steve and two worlds left: Muspelheim and Niflheim."

T'Challa walked towards the projection, his eyes not leaving the map. "And we know that the stone for Muspelheim was not used, because Barron Zemo tried to use it against us and the Enchantress when he infiltrated the mansion."

Tony tapped a few more buttons on the console. Steve's face moved over to Niflheim. "Which leaves—"

With an incredulous look, Thor shook his head. "Impossible!"

"Not only is it possible, it's probable, big guy," Tony retorted. "It makes total sense when you take into account that I've been seeing Steve when my arc reactor is being messed with. Don't you see? I've been coming in and out of there."

Jan raised her hand. "Wait, are you saying that you've died three times in the last three months? You died earlier today? And you did that knowingly? _Tony_ —"

Tony laughed sheepishly. "I was only dead for a few seconds. You guys put the arc reactor back in, I'm fine, and now I know the answer."

"Woah," Carol said. "Anyone want to explain what's going on to the class? I didn't get to go on the field trip and you guys are talking Greek."

With a shrug, Tony replied, "Well, Norse, actually."

"Tony—" Carol had the look on her face that said she was holding back the urge to throttle Tony. It was expression he saw a lot on Carol's face.

Perching himself on one of the chairs, Clint started checking his arrows instead of paying attention. "Someone tell me when he gets to something relevant. And when we are going to discuss his suicidal tendencies? Because, Goddamn. I thought I was bad."

"Right. What we, well, what I am saying is that I think Steve is in Niflheim."

"And that means...?" Carol said, waving her hand in a circle as a signal for Tony to get on with it.

"Niflheim is our land of the dishonored dead," Thor said, shaking his head. "It is where the weak and infirm go to meet their eternal end."

A silence fell over the room. After a moment, Carol said, slowly, "So... Cap is... dead?"

" _No_. Steve's alive, okay?" Tony replied, a little more desperate sounding than he intended, but hey, he was getting tired of repeating himself. "He's not dead. I heard his voice. He called out to me."

"Jesus, can he sound more like a chick flick?" Clint muttered to his arrows. 

Walking over to Tony, Jan placed a hand on his shoulder. "But you just said it yourself, Tony. If he's in the land of the dead—"

"But a hero such as Steven Rogers belongs in the halls of Valhalla, not the desolate lands of the dishonored dead," Thor interrupted. "Something is direly wrong with this entire affair."

Tony pulled away from Jan's attempted comforting gesture. "Exactly! Which is why I think he was taken there. I don't know why, or how. Maybe it's some residual thing from when he was teleported there by the Norn stone. But that woman I saw with him had him under some kind of trance."

The color drained from Thor's face. "You do not mean Hela?"

"I don't know," Tony said, frustrated. He pushed a hand through his hair, leaving it a mess. "We'll find out when we get there."

"Woah," Clint interjected. He was now sitting at full attention, his bows forgotten. “Are you saying... you want us to seriously go to the land of the dead to save Cap?"

"We can't just leave him there if that's where he is," Carol replied.

Unwilling to leave his train of thought, Tony looked to Thor. "Have you been to Niflheim?" While he was waiting for the Avengers to gather, Tony had read everything he could find on Niflheim, which admittedly was not much. What he found only made him feel worse. Souls being devoured by snakes; an ocean of dead bodies crawling around; the place sounded like the worst amusement park ever. Hopefully, it was more myth than fact. Tony dreaded thinking about how long Steve had been trapped in that bleak place. Would he be okay when they brought him home? Would he _want_ to be brought home after experiencing all of that? Tony now understood why Steve had been so standoffish after their victory over Loki. The few seconds he had spent there were draining enough.

Thor shook his head. "I have not. That is Hela's realm, and she wishes to collect me. I therefore stay as far away as the stars will allow. She is as calculating as her father Loki, and twice as compulsive." Taking a step forward, he added, "But if what you say is true, friend Tony, then he is as good as dead. If his soul is truly there, then there is nothing that can be done."

"I've traveled in and out of that God forsaken place three times now, and I'm fine. Cap went and came back once already during our fight with Loki. And from what I've read in these stories, your dad has gone back and forth as well. We can get him back. It's doable."

"No wait, hold the phone, guys." Clint stalked his way over and put himself between Thor and Tony. "You are talking about traveling to the _land of the dead_ without any proof that we are actually going to find anything there, save for us then being in the _land of the fucking dead_."

"Hawkeye brings up a valid concern," T'Challa nodded. "What if you are incorrect in your assumptions?"

Tony let out a growl of frustration. "You're just going to have to trust—" 

"Not to mention there's not a direct way to get there to check, save for killing ourselves," Clint added.

Running his hands through his hair, Tony retorted, "There's got to be another way to get there!"

Raising an eyebrow, Clint crossed his arms over his chest. "What are we supposed to do? We don't all have batteries that we can remove on demand. You can go on your magical suicide mission to save your boyfriend yourself, count us out."

Tony turned to Clint, glaring. "You are really pushing it, Barton."

"I'm pushing it? I'm not the one that's trying to chase Captain America into the underworld! Perhaps I need to remind you all: Skrulls? Invasion? Earth doomed? Any of this ringing a bell?" Clint offered. "We already lost enough investigation time messing around with this week's episode of _As the Stark Turns_. We need to get back on track."

"Lay off, Clint," Carol said, her annoyance clear in her voice. "This is not the time—"

"If none of you want to help me, I can do this myself!" Tony replied. It came out more desperate than he intended, oh yes it did. That was completely unintentional, but at least it got the rest of the Avengers looking a bit guilty. It was unfathomable to Tony how unwilling they were to go along with this. So what if he didn't have any proof? What was sitting downstairs in a holding cell should have been enough proof that Steve is missing and needed to be found. The gritty details of how retrieval would be done were irrelevant at this point.

Throwing his hands up in the air, Clint replied, "That's what I'm saying! Go be the knight in shiny ass armor! There are more important things to deal with here."

"If Niflheim is part of the Nine Realms, then surely it can be reached using the Bifröst?" T'Challa interrupted. "If that is so, then Iron Man _could_ make this journey—"

Shaking his head no, Thor answered, "Nay, it has long been sealed off from the Bifröst. My father may have the capabilities to travel to and fro, however I doubt even the loss of the great Captain's life would convince him to take any of us to Niflheim. It is not the place for the living. Hela's Garm will seek us out and bring us into death's clutches."

"So that means no help from Odin either," Tony said as his shoulders sagged. There had to be a way there that didn't involve death. There just had to—

Wait. Of course, how could he forget? The device that they were going to make for Thor!

Tony's brain was suddenly over taken with calculations and a supply list. It would be cruder than he and T'Challa had originally intended, but he didn't have the time to spare to make it look fancy. Barring that there were no problems, he and JARVIS could have it put together in less than ten hours. Then, all he would have to do is go to where Steve had gone to find the weak spot of other dimensional energy between Earth and Niflheim. 

Raising her hand, Jan asked, "What the heck is a Garm?" 

"It is a ferocious black hound that stalks Niflheim," Thor explained. "It is the harbinger of death."

Jan paled. "Sounds lovely."

"While I do think we need to save Captain America, I must agree with Hawkeye. There are more important things at hand, Stark," T'Challa said, bringing the conversation back to the relevant. T'Challa walked over to the computer and began typing on the console. As he did so, all of the computer projections of the tree and the other worlds disappeared, and were replaced with the data Reed had given them on the Skrulls. "Once the Skrulls are dealt with, we will find a way to save him. He would do the same for any of us, but I know he would want us to wait until the danger was over to turn our attention elsewhere."

"Of course!" Tony waved his hands in surrender. "That makes perfect sense." Tony would be damned if he was going to wait a minute longer than he needed to. He was going to get Steve back that night. Having the team with him would only slow him down anyway.

Jan raised her eyebrow. "Tony?"

"What?" Tony blinked. "I'm being the responsible leader here. T'Challa's right— Cap would have my head if he knew we went running to save him while aliens are secretly invading the earth." Which was true, but Tony couldn't leave Steve there either. He could take a being bitched at by Steve session if it meant having him be home.

Visibly thrown back, Jan replied, "Really? Wow. That's really responsible of you."

"Or, you know, the sane choice," Clint shrugged. "Because seriously, you were just talking crazy. Be happy that we're not checking you in at the funny farm." 

Tony let out a short laugh. "Yeah I guess I was," he said, scratching the back of his head. "I just want him back here."

"We know, Tony," Carol said, walking up to Tony and placing her hand on his back. "We'll find him soon, I promise. It'll be okay."

"Yeah," Tony nodded. In his peripheral vision, he saw Thor staring at him. Tony wondered if there was probably some Asgardian ability to see into human's minds. So long as he didn't try to stop him, Thor could stare all he wanted.

...

It took fifteen hours to have a working prototype, thanks to one of the circuits wanting to have a hissy fit. Tony mentally tallied every minute extra it took to get the damn thing finished. While JARVIS was checking the final calibrations of the device, Tony prepped the left repulsor glove to wear on his journey. After their last excursion into the Nine Realms, Tony was hesitant to bring a full Iron Man suit with him if it was just going to break on impact. Sure, he could always make another, but it was also a risk to be trapped in a broken suit. A single glove, he could cope with if it broke. He was also bringing Steve's photon shield, which he could give to Steve when he found him. Just in case.

"Sir, I have finished the device calibration as requested," JARVIS announced. 

"Thanks JARVIS. I'm nothing without you, baby." Tony took the device off of the console and began to inspect it. 

"I have yet to see you run any possible calculations about your return. May I ask what you intend to do, sir?"

Tony laughed nervously. It wasn't that he hadn't thought about it. He had at great length. He just didn't like any of the options he was coming up with. He couldn't bring the device with him when he went through the wormhole. There was the option of making another device, but there was no guarantee that the same spot would open the door to earth once he got to Niflheim. Not to mention it requiring more time. "Wing it. Best laid plans of mice and men, you know."

"Your plans often do go awry, sir. I would, yet again, urge you to wait and have the Avengers accompany you."

Snapping the glove on, Tony double checked it to make sure everything functioned correctly. "I know it's not a very leader-type thing to do, but its better this way, JARVIS. If I'm alone I can make the tough calls."

"Similar to this afternoon's events?" Thor's voice came from behind Tony.

"Woah! Way to ninja sneak there, big guy. JARVIS didn't even pick you up," Tony said, as he turned to face the Asgardian. "How long were you listening?"

"Long enough to confirm my suspicions," Thor said as he extended his hand. 

For a second, Tony thought Thor was going to grab him. He braced himself for the impact, but it never came. He opened his eyes to see that Thor had a ruby and gold cloth in his hand. It was the robe that Freyja gave him in Asgard. "What—"

"Take this with you," Thor's voice was somber. "You will need it on your journey."

Tony looked at the robe dubiously. "Thanks, but it's not really my style. I prefer a more modern look—"

Thor thrust the robe at Tony's chest. Tony fumbled to catch it before it fell to the ground. "I believe Lady Freyja foresaw this happening. She gifted her robe to you for a reason. You must take it. If you do not, then I shall inform the rest of the Avengers of your plans."

"Blackmail? Really, Thor? It's just a robe."

"A robe which contains much power," Thor said with a nod. "Head what I say, for I have experienced its wonders. I once donned the robe as a disguise to retrieve Mjölnir from Jotunheim."

Tony raised an eyebrow. "You're kidding."

"Not in the least. It was my brother Loki's idea to disguise myself as a bride in order to gain the trust of the Jotuns. If it were not for the robe, I would not have succeeded."

A smile played on Tony's lips. "It must be powerful if it was capable of making you look like a convincing woman."

Thor blinked, looking thoroughly confused. "I do not understand your meaning."

"Nothing, nothing," Tony said, shaking his head as he put the robe on. "So long as you keep quiet about all of this, then I will wear the robe, okay?"

"Thank you, my friend," Thor smiled. "While I know I cannot stop you in your retrieval of the Great Captain, it does my heart good to know you will have Freyja's protection. When do you leave on your journey?" 

"As soon as possible," Tony said, turning back to the computer console. "I have to trace back to where Steve encountered his Norn stone." He brought up the map showing the paths of other dimensional energy. If he recalled, the place where Steve went was somewhere in Europe. The map showed two. One line ran through where Steve indicated where the Hydra base had been, and the other somewhere in Slovakia. It would take about four hours to reach by the Quinjet. Tony turned back to Thor and nodded, "Thank you, big guy. I owe you."

"You may thank me by returning with the Great Captain as soon as the fates will allow," Thor replied. He gave a small bow and then left the workshop with a great _swoosh_ of his cape.

Tony had work to do.

...

Leave it to Steve to pick the one spot that was on top of a dilapidated castle. It was in such disrepair, Tony was afraid to park the Quinjet anywhere near it for fear of it collapsing in on itself. Instead he parked it a few hundred yards away and walked the rest of the way, the device clutched tightly under his arm. As promised, Tony was wearing Freyja's robe, as ridiculous as he looked. Thor was right about one thing; if he was going to mess with Asgardian mojo, it would be nice to have some sort of magical protection. And if it came in the form of a woman's dress robe, then, he couldn't be choosy.

It seemed to take longer to climb the castle's crumbling stairs than it did to fly to the wretched place. Tony's legs felt heavy, but he couldn't give up. Not when he was so close. In his pocket, his phone worked as a detector for the paths of other dimensional energy. It began to beep furiously as he reached the top of the final flight of stairs. "Right," Tony breathed. He placed the device on the floor and activated it. As it turned on, a large pool of, well—as if he were looking straight into space. As a precaution, Tony put his Avenger ID card on a near-by piece of castle debris. If anything happened, the Avengers could at least track his last known position.

Taking a deep breath in, Tony said, "Here goes nothing." 

 

Unsurprisingly, traveling through a wormhole sucked—and not just literally. That too, but Tony also felt as if he'd been run over by a bullet train five or six times in the process. Stars blurred around him as he shot through space much faster than he would ever be able to achieve mechanically. 

Then there was nothing.

His body bounced on solid ground three or four times before he realized that he was no longer in the wormhole. He let out a loud moan as he attempted to push himself off of the ground once, twice. It also took a few tries to get his eyes to open up. When he finally managed to do that, he noted two things. One, as predicted, his hand repulsor did not make the trip. The repulsor was lying in broken pieces on the sand floor, while the glove seemed fine. Not that it would be much good without the repulsor. However, the photonic shield device still looked intact enough to be able to try. The second thing he noted that he was in the middle of nowhere. Surrounded by a red haze, there were no mountains, no trees, nothing, with the distinct smell of sulfur in the air. But he was sure that this was the place he had been before. With a nod, and trying to ignore his newly gotten bruises, Tony pushed himself standing. 

"Right, so if I was Steve Rogers, where would I be?" he asked the nothingness. 

Using his honed skills of never really being good at camping, Tony decided that straight ahead would be the best direction. "I'm coming, Steve."


	4. Chapter 4

Steve looked over his shoulder, blinking. "Did you say something?" he asked, looking over to Odr. He couldn't have fallen asleep. 

They were taking a moment's rest. The red sky was starting to lose its color, fading into dull clouds hanging heavy in the skies. They were close now. With each step they took, the air seemed to grow slightly colder. 

"I said nothing," Odr shrugged, folding his arms against his chest and lying back on the ground. "It seems your body as well as your mind is tired. You should rest."

Shaking his head, Steve replied, "I can't sleep." Pushing himself off the ground, he stretched his back and shoulders. As they got closer to the tree, the air seemed to become heavier. He felt exhausted and old. "I won't."

"It has been a tiring journey, my friend. Niflheim's crimson haze can wreak havoc on the best of Asgardian minds. Your ability to navigate through this world is impressive."

"It's just like winter on the Russian border," Steve said with a shrug. "Although without the red sky, and there had been at least trees and mountains to help track where I had been. There's nothing here."

Odr placed a hand on Steve's shoulder. "You have done well. It must not have been easy whilst guarding yourself against the Garm. A brief respite will do your body a world of good."

"And I might not wake up," Steve countered, pulling the borrowed shield back onto his arm. "Every time I close my eyes, I see that field of poppies again. I can tell Hela is waiting for me to drop my guard to pull me back into her illusions. What about you? You said you would welcome death, but you're here with me, fighting against it. If you came to Niflheim to die—"

"Not to die; to hide," Odr corrected. "Like the coward I am, I hide in this place, where I do not have to face my beloved."

"In the land of the dead?" Steve raised an eyebrow. "Surely, it can't be that bad."

Letting out a deep sigh, Odr turned away from Steve. "My dearest wife held a secret from me. A grave secret. It was only to protect me, I know now. When that snake Loki forced the wretched truth to the surface, my world was crushed. Instead of listening to my wife, I only betrayed her further by casting her aside and shaming her in front of all. When I realized what I had done, I fled. Freyja will never forgive me, and I cannot blame her."

Freyja? Where had he heard that name before? Shaking his head, Steve said, "If she kept such a big secret from you to protect you... then it sounds like she loves you very much. I'm sure she would forgive you." 

"Even if she did, I do not think I can face her again after what I did," Odr replied, turning back towards Steve. "How about your Tony? Would you be able to face him after betraying him like I betrayed my wife?"

"I already have," Steve's voice turned solemn. But before he could elaborate, something in the air caught Steve's eye. "Look!" Steve pointed upwards. "Snow!" 

Looking up to the sky, Odr narrowed his eyes as snow began to leak from the clouds. 

"You said when we reached snow, the tree would be here," Steve continued. He gestured around them. "Shouldn't we be seeing it by now?"

Odr stood up lightning fast as his hand went for his sword. "Something is wrong." He pointed his sword towards the sky. The snow was beginning to fall harder now, the snowflakes almost the size of Steve's hand. Everything was quickly being overtaken with white. "We have been fooled!"

A strong gust of frozen wind took Steve's breath away for a moment. Clenching his teeth, Steve pushed his shield forward, blocking the snow from his face. Another gust of wind brought more snow, which began to swirl around like a tornado. Within the funnel, a large shadowed figure emerged, at least five times as tall as Steve. There was a loud groan. The ground underneath of them shook each time the figure began to step forward.

"It is Ymir!" Odr explained, taking Steve's flank. The same side Tony always took. Steve felt his stomach drop. 

He heard a voice within the wind gust. "I'm coming, Steve."

Steve turned to Odr. "What?"

"Hela must have brought him here!" Odr said, or repeated. Steve couldn't be sure. For a moment he thought he heard— Shaking his head, he reminded himself that he needed to focus. Ymir broke through the snow tornado, spreading mass amounts of snow everywhere. It was a fierce looking creature. His entire body was composed only of snow, save for his long face, which was chiseled in ice. "He is one of the primordial sources. We cannot win this battle," Odr warned. 

Ymir gave another piercing roar as he stomped towards the two. 

A chill ran up Steve's spine as he looked Ymir in the eyes. The monster had a piercing stare that could send the bravest of men screaming. Steve did his best to keep it together. "I didn't understand that first part at all, but I do know you shouldn't go into a fight with a defeatist attitude. The Avengers have taken on things much scarier than him." 

"Destroying Ymir would destroy the fabric of the Nine Realms."

"That I understand." He glanced at Odr, "At least we're already dead."

"Mortal arrogance even now?" Odr smirked. Taking a step towards the giant, he raised his sword in challenge. "I shall distract him while you push onward."

"What?" Steve shouted as another gust of wind slammed into them. "No! You just said we can't win! I won't have you sacrifice—"

"I've already told you, my life had ended before I set foot in Niflheim," Odr replied sharply. Ymir, understanding Odr's challenge, let out another roar before taking a fast swipe at the warrior. Odr dropped to the ground and dodged the blow with a tumble. "Go!" he shouted. "This is not your purpose!" 

"No!" Steve threw the shield towards Ymir, which it blocked easily. Steve jumped towards the monster, catching the shield as it fell to the ground. 

Odr charged the snow monster, giving a primal scream as he sliced through it. The snow only shifted around his blade as it cut. This seemed to only anger the monster further. He held onto the blade and threw it, along with Odr, several feet to its right. Roaring, it stomped over to where Odr landed, and raised one of its legs to squash him.

In an effort to distract Ymir, Steve threw his shield again, this time at the side of the monster's head. The shield disintegrated its head on impact, only to have the snow shift and be replaced a moment later. It was enough time to let Odr recoup and get back to his feet. However, it brought Ymir's attention back to Steve. The snow monster lifted its hand high into the air and brought his fist crashing into the ground. A wave of snow burst through the ground, and hit Steve without warning, throwing him to the ground. Steve could hear Odr's shouts being drowned out by the wind as the world went from white to black, and then to red.

 

In the distance he could see a long bridge floating on a river. The water was filled with poppies, shifting with the small ripples of waves. The red hue of the flowers made the ocean seem that it was made with blood, not water. On the bridge two figures stood hidden in shadow.

_So is there a toll to cross your bridge of death?_

Tony?

_Most do not seek to cross into Niflheim. And those who do, do not have noble causes._

The other voice was one that Steve had not heard before. It was a woman's, deep and booming. But he did not have time to linger on her voice. It was what she said. _Niflheim._

_I'm looking for someone._

Had Tony already reached Niflheim? He was too late.

_I know why you are here._

He tried to call out, "Tony!"

 _Steve?_ One of the figures turned its head. It had to be him, it just had to be. 

"Tony!" Steve breathed. He heard him? "Tony!" he called again. 

_Steve._

" _Steve_ ," it was Odr's voice. Something was shaking Steve's body. His eyelids heavy, Steve opened his eyes to see Odr leaning over him. Without hesitation, Odr grabbed Steve's arm and pulled him to his feet. Urging him forward, he said "You must flee!" Steve could feel blood dripping onto his arm. With a glance at Odr's arm, Steve saw that the man had been wounded, badly, if the amount of blood was any indication. But that was impossible! If they were in the land of the dead, then how—?

From behind them, Ymir's roars echoed. Odr stopped pushing Steve forward, and moved into a defensive stance, his back to Steve's. Ymir was hunched over flailing, looking angrier than ever, with Odr's sword sticking out the back of his shoulder. Odr took a few steps back, pushing Steve with him. "Find Yggdrasill," he instructed his voice thick with pain. "I will not be able to keep him occupied for much longer."

"I can't just leave you—"

"I have no purpose to find. You— you have a very—" Odr winced, "Noble purpose to fulfill. Take my second chance as your own. Save your Tony— tell him the truth." He turned around, pivoting his feet in order to give Steve a firm shove, pushing him back at least five feet away. "Go!" he shouted. 

With a stiff nod, Steve scrambled to his feet and began to run as fast as the snow banks would allow, Odr's shield still strapped to his arm. 

The world was a white blur around him, with only Ymir's screams and the wind ringing in his ears. He only stopped running when he started to hear splashes of water. 

It was then he realized his feet had turned cold. He looked down to see that the snow, while still there, was floating on what seemed to be a shallow riverbank. A single poppy drifted by his right foot. Following where the water led with his eyes, he saw that it was not the only one. The river was completely covered with blossoms, just as he had seen when he was knocked out. He quickly scanned the area for the bridge. If Tony was still on it—

There was no bridge. 

Instead there was a gigantic tree root, taller than he could have possibly imagined, that wound a path upwards into a tree that overtook the entire grey sky with its menacing looking branches. It was so enormous that Steve, wondered how he didn't see it sooner. 

He had finally reached Yggdrasill. 

Cautiously, he walked towards the tree, shield held at the ready. For being the tree of life, it looked quite evil. Its roots were gnarled and twisted. The splattering of red from the poppies floating on the water made it seem like the tree itself was bleeding. As he got closer to the roots, he could hear a faint hissing sound grow louder and louder. Eyes darting back and forth, he looked for the sound's source.

"I waited for you," a voice echoed. It was female, and sounded frail. But it had a hint of a strength that seemed familiar.

Steve paused in his approach, searching the roots for someone hiding. "Who's there?"

"I would dream about you coming home, that cheeky grin on your face," the voice continued. The figure revealed itself to Steve's right. He turned towards her, shield up and ready. It was an elderly woman who had long flowing white hair that fell to her hips. Her white dress on that was so similar to her color hair it was difficult to tell where the hair ended and dress began. And she was sitting beside a gigantic snake, whose body wrapped tightly around the tree root, just as Hela had shown him. It was the Nidhogg. 

"But you never did return," the woman said. Steve looked hard at her, taking in her features. It was something about her strong jawline that seemed so familiar. "So like all dreams, I watched the hope fade and die. Even in death, you kept me waiting."

The color drained from Steve's face. "Peggy?"

"Hello, Steven. You're late."


	5. Chapter 5

After walking through the haze for what seemed to be hours, Tony came across a large river that cut through the nothingness. On top of the water, there was a floating wooden bridge that looked like it had been there since the dawn of time (and all things considered, probably was). The river was full of rotting corpses. Thankfully, the overpowering smell of sulfur drowned out any other smell. Sulfur's smell may be horrible, but it was much better than smelling a river full of dead and rotting flesh. 

At the end of the bridge stood a woman twice Tony's height, and an axe longer than Tony was tall strapped to her back. She also had an unimpressed look on her face. Crossing her arms against her large chest, she eyed Tony warily. "How did ye come by that robe? Tis Freyja's property." Glaring, she added, "No mere mortal should be in possession of it."

"It was a gift from Freyja," Tony said with a shrug. He took a few confident strides to the base of the bridge and called out, "I take it this is the way to Niflheim?"

"Indeed, mortal," she replied. "I am Modgud, the guardian of the bridge." Her husky voice echoed in the nothingness around them.

When she said nothing more, Tony let out an impatient huff. "Look, as fun as it is to play Lord of the Rings reenactment with you, I'm kind of in a hurry. So is there a toll to cross your bridge of death?"

Modgud raised an eyebrow, "Most do not seek to cross into Niflheim. And those who do, do not have noble causes."

Tony was willing to guess that breaking into the land of the dead to save Steve was not something that this Modgud would consider a noble cause. According to Thor, even Odin wouldn't. Tony was messing with the order of things, after all. But then again, Steve wasn't supposed to be in Niflheim in the first place so... There was always the option of making up something noble sounding, but Tony was willing to bet that she would see right through anything he tried to spin. The truth then. "I'm looking for someone." 

The giant stared at him, seeming to look through him (which, when Tony thought about it, she probably was). Then a small smile came to her lips, but she said nothing more.

Just as Tony was about to open his mouth in an attempt to charm the giant, he heard a faint call that was barely above the sound of a whisper.

"Tony!" the voice called. 

Tony would know that voice anywhere. It seemed as if had been ages since he heard it. Whirling his head around, he tried to find its source. "Steve?" He shouted, the desperate sound of his voice surprising himself. 

"Tony!" Steve's voice echoed, louder this time. "Tony!" 

"Steve!" Tony took a few steps towards where he thought the voice was coming from, which took him close to the riverbank. Too close. One corpse sprang out of the river and made a grab at Tony's foot with a snarl. Its movement caused two more corpses to pop their heads out of the water, letting out a terrible moan in unison. Tony jumped back. 

Modgud's smile simply grew wider. "It would seem thou hast inhabitants waiting, Anthony."

"How did..." he started, but then what she said sunk in and any thoughts on how she knew who he was vanished. As Tony stared at the corpse, the color drained from his face. It was still watching him with its sunken eyes and shapeless pale face. Tony could feel something falter in the arc reactor. "Oh God, that isn't... Please tell me that isn't Steve. I got here as fast as I could—"

"If it were?" Modgud asked, tilting her head to the side. "What would ye do then? Abdicate thy task?"

"I..." Tony's voice faltered. "No, I couldn't abandon Steve. Not after everything... If this is him, then... well..." He watched as the corpse slowly re-submerged into the river of death, pain still wracking in his chest. "We would have some negotiating to do."

Modgud let out a soft laugh. It sounded far too evil for Tony's liking. "All the souls who cross this bridge plead for their lives. Little good it does them. Why should thine outcome be different?"

Taking a step forward onto the bridge, Tony replied, "Because I am crossing it willingly. I'm asking nothing for myself. I just want Steve to— he's not supposed to be—" Tony's voice faltered. He had insisted to the team over and over again that there was no way that Steve could be dead, but now, standing on the bridge into Niflheim, he could not bring himself to say it. Not when that damned corpse was still staring at him as it sank down into the depths.

"Fear not, Anthony. The corpse which thou witnessed was not that of thy Steve." With a nod, Modgud added, "Niflheim is a vast realm. There are sure to be ones thou hast lost; family, enemies, friends. I tell ye this as a warning." 

"A warning?"

Modgud uncrossed her arms, and moved to the side of the bridge, allowing space for Tony to pass. "Thy task tis as noble as thine heart, Anthony— strange though it may be. Be not distracted by what ye may see in this land, for the longer ye reside here, easier thou will fall into Hela's grasp."

Tony's jaw dropped. "Wait, are you letting me pass?"

"My duty lies in ensuring lost souls find their way across and preventing those lost who try to return to the other realms. Those who are yet living are not my concern."

"So what was with the Billy Goats Gruff thing, then?" Tony asked as he crossed the bridge. Any hesitation he may have had was forgotten and instead there was just plain annoyance. "If you have no control over what I do, why the hell do you care?"

Raising an eyebrow, Modgud said, "I was merely curious. Forgive me if I trespassed. However, I understand now why Freyja entrusted thee with her robe." Nodding her head respectfully, she added, "Heed what I have told ye, Anthony. Much good it will do."

If Tony had learned anything since Thor came into his life, it was to double-check the fine print when it came to anything in the Nine Realms or vaguely magical. Going over what she said in his head once more, he asked, "So wait, are you going to hassle me again when I come back with Steve? Because... I mean, he's in Niflheim and I'll be taking him out... Wouldn't it be your duty to stop us?"

Modgud considered it for a moment. "If either his or thy soul is taken, devoured by the Nidhogg or otherwise, and has joined those of the river before thee, then I must perform my duty, noble task or no."

"But... whatever is Nidhogg is, it hasn't eaten Steve's soul yet, right? Because you would know."

"He is not here yet, Anthony," Modgud said as she shook her head. With flourish, she pointed into the red haze of Niflheim. "Fear not. But do not hesitate, either. Time is working against thee."

...

The red haze was starting to take its toll on Tony. It was impossible to tell where he was in the thick mess of red and gray, and there was no end to it in sight. Tony kept track of the passing of time by muttering to himself the verses of 'Forever Blowing Bubbles.' The haze stung his eyes, even when shut. It reminded him too much of the sands in Afghanistan— with the hot sun burning down on him and that terrible walk in a single direction, praying to God that someone (the right someone) would find him before he died of dehydration, exhaustion, or a combination of the both.

At least, in Niflheim, dying wasn't on the table. Or was it? The physics of the whole land of the dead thing still didn't make sense. Fucking magic. So long as Modgud let Steve and him cross back over the bridge, he supposed it didn't really matter anyway. They just needed to get home. Fast.

Tony hadn't really thought about what would happen once he got to Niflheim. It should have been easy. Once he arrived, _bam!_ Steve should have been there, so happy to see him, and then they would've gone home. And everything would go back to how it was again. Normal. Awkward—after the whole revelation and making out with the Skrull thing—but normal. 

However, like everything in Tony's life, things got complicated and fast.

Being able to see Steve again would give him a world of relief. "Dammit, Steve. Where are you?" Tony muttered, glaring into the hazy distance. 

Then a voice that Tony knew all too well shook him to the core. "It seems you picked up my bad habit of monologuing to yourself."

All of his muscles clenched at the sound of that voice. Tony turned in the direction where the voice came from and took a deep breath. "No. Fucking. Way."

Howard looked exactly as Tony remembered him. Not the seventy-something year old that he ended life as, but as the source of bitterness and frustration from Tony's childhood. Raising an eyebrow, Howard said, "I see your manners are still top-notch. You haven't seen me in what, over twenty years, and those are the first words you say to me? Your mother would be so proud after all those years of etiquette school."

Thankfully, she wasn't there. Tony was quite sure he would have run for the non-existent hills if she was. "You look like shit, old man," Tony countered, because really what else was he supposed to say? Howard was the last person he expected, or wanted, to see. 

Howard let out an amused grunt. "You're the one to talk. What on earth are you wearing? And just how many years has it been since you slept?" 

Popping the fabric of the ruby and gold robe, Tony replied, "If you must know, this is a gift from a Norse Goddess, actually. And I've been a little busy, running Stark Industries, inventing new technology you couldn't even dream of. Oh, not to mention saving the world. Repeatedly," Tony countered. "Besides, it's not like you got hours of shut eye when you were up and hopping with the living."

"When I lost sleep, at least it was over a good cause. Not because I was gallivanting around town trying to convince anyone who would pay attention for more than three seconds, that I was important. I didn't have to pretend, Tony. I _was_ important."

"The Avengers _are_ important."

"It's a vanity project, in which you are draining _my_ money to fund."

"No," Tony seethed. "It's a project I have invested _my_ money in. And it's not a waste. I don't need a fucking return on it. We are saving the world each and every day. You should be proud of me."

"Now that is an old tune I've heard time and time again. Always the unappreciated son: poor Tony Stark. Never mind that he never appreciated all the sacrifices that his father made for him, it was always about him. And now he's dead, spending eternity with the one person who he hates the most." Howard laughed. The horrible sound of it rang in Tony's ears, bringing back memories that he wanted to stay buried deep. "What irony."

Glaring, Tony took a defensive step back. "I'm not dead."

Howard let out another laugh. "You are in the wrong place then, son."

"I created an inter-dimensional device that allows the user to travel between the nine mythical— God did I just say mythical? Christ, I did. The Nine _Norse_ Realms."

"And then you decided to come to the land of the dead." Howard nodded. "My son, the prodigy, walks straight into death. Doesn't take a genius to realize this is not the place to have gone."

Tony seethed. "I'm here because—"

"I'm well aware why you are here, silly boy," Howard retorted. Tony could hear the venom in his words. It was like he was four years old all over again. "You're not here for me. You're here for _him_ , and that makes it all the more embarrassing. As if you could ever save Captain America. You can't even save yourself."

His words punched Tony in the gut. It was true, all of it, but for it to come out of that bastard's mouth... it made it all the worse. 

Howard either didn't care that he had hit such a tender subject, or didn't notice how much what he was saying affected his son—Tony was willing to bet it was the first— because he continued to speak. "I'm sure your little hero-worshipping crush on him is just a burden. Cap doesn't want your help. He probably never did. You know as well as I that the only reason he even speaks to you because you are my son."

In the back of Tony's mind, he recognized that even Howard wouldn't talk to him this way. Yes, the old man made it seem most of the time that he thought Tony was the worst thing that could happen in his life— but all these things were things Tony told himself all the time. But the rest of his brain wasn't listening, only getting more angry and frustrated with Howard for being there and berating him. "That's not—" Tony's voice faltered. "We're on a team. We work great together. We're friends. He's made me into something you could never be: a hero and a team member."

"Hmph, friends," Howard sneered. "I bet he sees right through you for the fraud that you really are." 

In the corner of his eye, Tony saw something huge and black. That probably was the hound of death Thor was warning him about. Tony knew he should run away, that this was all distracting him from his task at hand. But he couldn't let this go. He activated the photonic shield, and pressed it towards Howard. "You see this? I created this. For Steve. To replace _your_ shield that _broke_."

"Another shiny distraction," Howard countered. "Tony Stark is trying to buy another friend."

Tony growled. Or perhaps it was the hound behind him who growled. Tony couldn't be sure. He swung the shield in Howard's direction, making the ghost of Howard vanish into the red mist. 

The hound behind him growled louder. Using the swing to pivot his feet, Tony found himself face to face with the hound. It was much bigger than Tony had pictured it when Thor had described it. He was thinking maybe Hound of Baskervilles size—something that sounded bigger than it actually was. This hound was as big as Thor, with large fangs, and terrible green eyes that chilled Tony to the bone. "Right. Can we just call a truce, maybe? See, I'm not here to be dead forever, which you probably already know since I'm not dead. Which is why you are here, and hrm, well I guess I just answered my own question there. But I mean, I'm really gamey and I know I won't taste good, so maybe you should just go find someone else to lurk around?"

The hound growled louder. 

"I'll take that as a no."


	6. Chapter 6

"Peggy," Steve breathed. "What are—"

"I would think that answer would be obvious, Steven," Peggy replied, a small smile on her face as she pet the Nidhogg on the head. "You were in the ice for how many years? I could only wait so long. "

"Peggy, I'm sorr—"

"Sorry for what, Steven? For falling into the ice? For surviving after being presumed dead for seventy years?" Turning her head towards Steve, Peggy's long white hair spun around her in waves, like snowfall. It was stunning, but slightly eerie. It reminded him too much of the fight he had just escaped, abandoning poor Odr to his fate. After a short glare, Peggy turned her attention back to petting the snake, pointedly not looking at Steve. "You _promised_ me. I spent my entire life waiting for you to come back to me. And once we are finally reunited, you refuse the only gift I could give you." She turned to Steve then. Even from where he was standing, he could see her eyes were wet. "Wasn't I the right partner?" 

Steve took a cautious step towards the tree, his shield falling to the side. "Please don't do this, Peggy. I can't—" He bit the inside of his cheek to distract himself. It didn't work that well. "You know that I care for you."

"And yet you're here for another," she retorted, darkly amused. 

"I—"

"You refused my offer of an eternity— for _him_. The son of Howard Stark."

Steve let his shoulders sag. That was the truth of it, wasn't it? In the poppy field, alone with Peggy—there was that moment he would have accepted that for his eternity. Until he heard Tony's voice call to him. And it was in fear of Tony's life that he set out on this mission in the first place. 

"I'm not quite sure what you see in him," Peggy said flippantly, interrupting Steve's train of thought. "He's more of a show-off than his father ever was. I always thought he was a self-centered prat with more brains than sense."

"Tony is a much better man than I ever could hope to be," Steve retorted. He stood tall once more, squaring his shoulders. "He is changing the world for the better. He's self-sacrificing, adaptable, and the smartest person I've ever met. The loss of him... is unimaginable." And as the words tumbled out of his mouth, Steve realized that Odr was right all along. 

This was far deeper than simple friendship. 

"There will be no need for trying to imagine it, it has become a reality," Peggy shrugged, still not looking at Steve. "Such a waste. To sacrifice everything to save someone who doesn't even need saving." 

Steve felt the color drain from his face. "What do you mean?"

"Once again you have failed the one that you love."

"Tony—"

"You were not the only one fighting for your reunion. Because you failed to take the initiative and tell him the truth from the beginning, Howard's son is here. In Niflheim. He is no longer in the world of the living." 

The impact of the news hit Steve so hard he fell to his knees. He tried. He had tried so hard, gone through so much to get to this point. 

From her evil glint in her smile, Peggy seemed to enjoy how hard Steve was taking this new information. "He's searching for you as we speak. The Garm will doubtless have him soon." 

Steve lowered his upper body down so his arms were the only things holding him up. The shield was still on his arm. 

"His soul should be here soon. You can wait here if you like," Peggy continued. "We can spend that time catching up. It seems you have much to tell me."

"No," Steve muttered under his breath as he shook his head. 

There was something not right about all of this. He could feel it in his bones. It was the same feeling he had when— Steve's eyes widened as he realized what had been in front of him the whole time. Odr was right about more than one thing. 

With a soft laugh, Steve shook his head. "You always were smarter than me."

"What?"

"'To sacrifice everything to save someone who doesn't even need saving,'" Steve said as he looked up to Peggy. Nidhogg was curling itself away from the tree, its beady eyes focused on Steve. 

"What are you talking about, Steven?" 

"' _To sacrifice everything to save someone who doesn't even need saving_ ,' that's what you said. The deal that I made with Hela..." Steve's voice trailed off as he closed his eyes. Yes, it was the same feeling he had when he had been in Niflheim previously. Jack Fury was offering him eternal rest along with the rest of the Howling Commandoes, all telling him to give into death. Steve had known something was wrong then just like he knew now. 

"I didn't fall in battle with Loki. It was only after." Steve looked straight into Peggy's eyes as he pushed himself up to standing. "I'm not dead, am I? I'm not supposed to be here. That's what you meant." When he saw Peggy flinch, he knew he was right. Shaking his head, Steve continued, "Then why did I come here?"

From behind Peggy, the Nidhogg furiously uncoiled itself away from the tree, and bared its enormous fangs. 

Glaring, she said, "You were at your weakest point. And then you gave up on everything, including your own life. All the souls who give up hope arrive here."

"But if I'm not dead, then I can leave."

"And abandon Howard's poor son to his fate? How cruel. But, to be expected of you. Always the one who survives." Peggy smiled, while the snake behind her still looked as if it could strike at any moment. Steve tightened his grip on his shield. 

"No, I'm leaving _with_ him."

"What don't you understand, Steven? Accept your fate. You are in Niflheim now. There _is_ no leaving." The Nidhogg looked straight into Steve's eyes and gave a loud hiss. 

"Oh, I think there is." He gave a loud yell as he threw the shield towards the giant snake. 

"You are a fool, Steven Rogers," Peggy smiled as both she and the Nidhogg avoided the shield's trajectory. As she closed her eyes, the white hair and fabric melted away to reveal Hela, green lipstick and all, smiling down on him. "I was considering letting you and Anthony share the afterlife together. But now I will enjoy watching you two be torn apart."

The snake lunged at Steve as he caught the shield rebounding. He had but a moment to put it up for defense before the Nidhogg connected. The wooden shield let out a blunt sound, as Steve was pushed back at least five feet, holding the snake's attack back. His feet were back in the water now as it pushed him away from the tree. Steve felt something grab his right foot. He quickly looked down, thinking the snake or perhaps Hela was trying to pull him down. But it was neither. It was a pale hand, sticking out of the water. Followed by another. And another. Steve glanced behind him quickly to see that the poppies that were floating on the river were gone. In their place were corpses, thousands of them, floating in the water just as the poppies had. They had glowing white skin, and black voids for eyes. They were all staring at him, whispering incomprehensibly.

His attention was off of the Nidhogg for too long. The snake took the advantage and side-swiped Steve into the ground. Controlling his fall, he rolled, splashing in the shallow water. More hands tried to grab at him to pull him down. Steve shook them off as he tried to get himself standing again, pushing at them with his shield if they would not yield. 

"I'm sorry, Steve," a voice echoed. 

Steve blinked, a rock dropping in his stomach. "Tony?" he called. No. No, it couldn't be. Hela had said that it was only a matter of time but... He quickly glanced around to see where Tony was, but only saw the Nidhogg and the floating corpses. "Hang on. Just hang on."

The snake hissed at Steve and then dove towards him for another attack, snapping its jaws as it did. Steve blocked the attack with his shield a second time, swinging the shield down to parry the snake's head. As the snake was thrown off balance, Steve brought his shield down hard on its head. It sliced through its flesh whole. After a moment of flailing, the Nidhogg's head stopped moving. Steve let out a sigh of relief. But just as he was about to reach for the its head to retrieve the fang, the wound repaired itself and the Nidhogg's head was once again attached to its body. 

"Fantastic." Steve took a few cautious steps backward, kicking away the hands grabbing his feet. "I'm starting to understand why Tony hates magic so much."

Launching itself towards Steve again, the Nidhogg let out an unearthly cry as it went straight for Steve's throat. Using all of his strength, Steve lunged forward, pushing his shield up. If he timed it just right...

The shield collided with the Nidhogg's open mouth. With the help of Steve's super strength, there was enough leverage to crack one of the snake's fangs clean out, breaking the shield in the process. The snake recoiled, throwing its head back in pain as it let out a horrible cry. Steve did not hesitate for a moment. He dropped the broken shield, grabbed the fang from the shallow water, and then ran for it. He wasn't sure where he was running, but he knew he needed to get away from that God awful river and the tree that loomed over everything.


	7. Chapter 7

Fighting with a shield really wasn't Tony's thing. But when put up against a hound of death, he would take what he could get. 

The Garm paced around him a second time, its eyes boring into him. It let out a low growl. Tony followed it in his paces, moving along with the hound as it circled. It was a game of chicken. The first one to show weakness would be attacked, if not taken down in one strike. Tony really didn't want to know what it would feel like to be pinned under such an enormous beast. But then again, in the land of the dead would something like weight even become a factor? Would he feel pain?

Taking the advantage of Tony's momentary distraction, the hound leapt towards him, growling as it did so. Tony reflected the attack with the shield, and doing the Captain America patented slide and kick move he had seen Steve do hundreds of times, he shifted the angle of the shield to slide the hound downward and kick him away. It would have worked, in theory. What Tony didn't count on was the hound pushing off of the shield, and lunging for his leg. 

Tony let out a cry of pain as the Garm's fangs went deep into his calf. Definitely could feel pain in the land of the dead. The Garm was so gigantic, that its front fangs took up the entire length from Tony's knee down to his foot. After the attack the beast leapt back and returned to its circle formation, continuing to watch Tony with its glowing eyes. Tony tried to walk it off, tried to return the hit, but as soon as he put weight on that leg, he faltered. The wound was deep. 

Falling to his knees, Tony clutched the gold and ruby robe tightly to him. "Some help you were," he said. The fabric shimmered around his fingertips. Hot blood was starting to pool around his legs. From behind him he could hear the impatient growl of the hound waiting for him to concede. The chill of death was upon him. Leaning over his knees, he held himself tightly to protect himself from the surrounding nothingness.

"I'm sorry, Steve," he murmured.

The air was so thick, so dense and suffocating, he could barely hear his own voice. He could hear the hum of the shield. And a faint voice in the distance. "Tony?" Tony closed his eyes. God, it was Steve again. He must have been dying for real now if he was starting to hear Steve's voice again. If the blood surrounding him was anything to go by, it wouldn't be long. He could feel the arc reactor working harder to compensate for the strain on his heart from the loss of blood. 

"Hang on," the voice said. "Just hang on."

The Garm readied itself for a final attack. As it leapt into the air, Tony pushed one of the activation buttons on the shield. It launched from standing position towards the Garm. It let out a whine as the shield hit him square in the head. The Garm fell to the ground with a loud thump as the shield ricocheted back to Tony's arm. He looked up weakly at the hound and smirked. "I'm not out yet."

Tony pushed himself to standing, ignoring the pain that shot through his leg. He wasn't going to be running a marathon anytime soon, but he also couldn't hang around to wait for the hound to regain consciousness. With a labored heave, he attempted to walk forward. A loud scream and a vomiting session later, he decided that maybe walking wasn't such a good idea. Waiting there on his hands and knees for a few minutes, trying not to black out, was an excellent plan.

After a brief respite, Tony attempted to stand up. Standing before going straight into walking was probably a better move. He winced in pain as he put weight down on the injured leg. Careful not to jar it more, Tony tried to look down to get a status report. His jeans were dyed a deep brownish red color, with more blood trickling down his foot onto the ground. It was a lot of blood. And while he now knew pain was a factor in Niflheim, Tony was curious whether bleeding out was going to be an option. Although he didn't really want to find out that first hand as well. He needed to stop the bleeding, which meant binding it. With Freyja's robe not being an option, and his jeans already pretty soaked with blood, his t-shirt was the only thing left. It was just a matter of getting the robe off carefully, and getting the t-shirt off even _more_ carefully. 

As he shifted his shoulders to pull the robe off, in his peripheral vision, Tony could see something break out of the red haze to his right. Before he could process that it was, in fact, a man, the figure slammed into him and they were both knocked down to the ground. 

The wound throbbed as he fell to the ground. Stars, he definitely saw stars. "Jesus fucking—" Tony seethed. And then he saw the red leather boots, and he could hear the arc reactor hum just a bit louder. "Steve," he breathed, all of his pain forgotten. Shifting his position, Tony pushed Steve down to the ground so he could see his face properly, piercing blue eyes and all. Beside them, Freyja's robe slowly fluttered to the ground. 

"Howard?" Steve's voice cracked.

Well that was one way to ruin the moment. Tony really must have looked like hell if Steve was making that mistake. "No, Steve. I'm _Tony_."

"Tony? _Tony_." The deep fear left Steve's eyes. His expression relaxed as he let out a sigh of relief. For a moment, Tony was ready to forgive Steve for mistaking him as his father just this once, because the expression on Steve's face tugged at his heart in a way that he should not be possible with the arc reactor regulating it. Then again, he was injured. Steve narrowed his eyes and shook Tony hard. "What are you doing in the land of the dead? What did you do?"

"What did I do? I came after you!"

"But Tony—" Steve put his hand on the ground to push himself to sit up. However, his hand landed in the pool of blood that Tony's wound had left. "You're hurt!" Quickly, Steve surveyed Tony’s entire person to find where he was bleeding. When he got to Tony's right leg, he sucked in his breath. From the look on Steve's face, Tony would have thought his world ended.

Shrugging, Tony replied, "It's only a flesh wound."

Steve gently took Tony's injured leg in his large hands. As he looked down at the wound, his eyes got unusually big. It would have been adorable to Tony if it was any other time. "Was it..." he swallowed hard, "the Garm?"

"You mean that thing over there?" Tony nodded towards the beast, still lying unconscious a few yards away. "Yeah it was."

Steve took a deep breath in. "We should... stop the bleeding," he said, applying pressure to Tony's leg.

"An excellent idea! Why didn't I think of that?" He said while pulling off his shirt. He took a fistful of cloth in each hand and tore the shirt in half. He gave the pieces to Steve. "Oh wait, I did. Right before some handsome guy in this awesome blue suit crashed into me," he said teasingly. As Steve took the torn shirt, Tony looked up and saw the solemn look on Steve's face. "Hey— I didn't mean—"

Closing his eyes, Steve shook his head. "I didn't make it."

"Sorry?" 

Slowly, and with an extreme gentleness that shouldn't have been possible for someone as big as Steve, he pushed the ripped jeans away from the wound and started to bind it. "I didn't make it in time," he said quietly. "I was trying to stop you from coming here. From following me." He said something else, but he mumbled it so quietly, Tony couldn't make it out.

"Steve, you are in Niflheim. The land of the dishonored dead. The Asgardian hell, if you will. Just think about that for a second, okay? God knows how you even managed to get here, because I _know_ you aren't supposed to be here— I checked some very reliable Asgardian sources. So, with all that considered, do you think that trying to stop me from saving you would even be possible?"

With a very small smile, Steve shook his head. "Not really," he replied, wrapping the cloth around Tony's leg a third time. "Although I was going to try anyway."

"And it would have been a valiant effort, I'm sure," Tony grinned as Steve tied the make-shift bandage. 

Tony shifted his weight so he could stand up, but Steve held him down. "Just, stay still for a little bit. You've lost a lot of blood."

Raising an eyebrow, Tony replied, "I don't know about you Steve, but I don't want to be around when that thing wakes back up."

"Just a few minutes." Steve slid his hands down Tony's arms. "Please."

Swallowing hard, Tony said, "Alright."

It was then that Steve noticed the control for the photonic shield around Tony's wrist. "What's this?"

"Oh," Tony flushed. He quickly moved his arms out of Steve's hold and took the control off of his wrist. "This is yours." Steve stared at it for a long moment, unmoving. "It's a new shield," Tony explained, taking Steve's right hand and clasping the control on. He hit the on button and the photonic shield appeared. And if his hand lingered for a moment, who was to know? 

Fascinated, Steve's eyes grew wide. "It's a photonic based shield," Tony explained. "It can grow or shrink down as you need it; it throws the same way as your old one, and is virtually weightless." The blush on Tony's cheeks was growing out of control. Was really getting embarrassed over this? It was like he was five years old all over again.

Pushing the button to turn it off, Steve cradled the gift with his free hand. "Thank you, Tony. This... this means a lot."

"It was the least I could do," Tony said, shrugging. "I told you I would take care of you."

A small smile formed on Steve's lips. "You did." Steve leaned closer into Tony's personal space, leaving only inches between them. 

As Steve closed the gap, Tony moved away. Before he could stop himself, he blurted out, "I may have inadvertently made-out with your Skrull doppelgänger self while you were here." 

Steve pulled back and blinked. "What?"

Tony pushed his right hand through his hair, smearing blood on the top of his forehead. Taking in a deep breath, he spoke almost too quickly for Steve to understand, "But in my defense, I didn't know it was, you know, _not_ you, and he came on to me, and well, you know me, slut-machine, so I just went with it and Jesus just punch me so I will stop talking?"

"Tony," Steve put a hand on Tony's shoulder. "What are you talking about?"

"There was this Skrull thing pretending to be you while you were here— which is why I took so long, sorry about that too by the way. I kissed the fake you, thinking it was you. You have permission to punch me in the face."

"Why would I punch you in the face?"

"Well, because I'm me, and you're... well... you. It makes sense to me." Tony ran both hands through his hair furiously, making it stick up in every direction. "Damn it Steve, don't make me say it, alright? It'll ruin everything. I just thought... you should know and I apologize. I totally understand if you're angry with me. I was pretty angry with me too." 

"I'm not angry."

Tony narrowed his eyes. "You sound angry. And you look angry too. You're doing that lowered eyebrow thing that intimidates evil doers or something."

Steve leaned back into Tony's space, so much at their foreheads touched. Lowering his eyelids, Steve's expression eased. "I'm not, okay?" he said quietly. Steve cupped the back of Tony's head with his hand. "If anything, I'm a little jealous." Tony's spine went completely straight as his hackles rose at the touch. He held his hand steady, not allowing Tony to pull away again. 

After a beat, Tony eased into the embrace, his shoulders becoming jelly. "Oh," he muttered, looking into Steve's eyes with his eyelids veiled. 

But before Tony could act on any of the thousands of inspirations now dancing around in his head, Steve pulled away, cheeks flushed and hot. "Come on," he said, taking Tony's hand. "You need to get out of here." Gently, Steve helped Tony get to his feet. 

" _We need_ ," Tony corrected. He tried to take a step, but his leg failed him again. 

Steve threw Tony's right arm around his shoulders and took on most of Tony's weight. "Let's try it this way?"

Steve could have taken on all of Tony's weight, and just carried him bridal style for all Tony cared. He probably wouldn't have even been that embarrassed. Steve was alive and with him. And they may have just had a moment. 

They took the first step together, Steve carefully leading Tony's injured leg. But as they took their second step, Tony paused. "Wait, the robe—" He turned his head and nodded to the gold and ruby robe fluttering on the ground. 

Looking at Tony questionably, Steve said, "Is that—"

"Not a word, Steve," Tony said as Steve leaned down to pick it up. He handed it over to Tony (who took it probably with more force than he should have— but he's an adult damn it). "It's come in handy," he explained, waving his free arm to indicate he wanted help putting the robe on. Steve obliged. "If it weren't for the robe, I probably wouldn't have been let into Niflheim."

As Steve curled Tony's arm around his neck for support, he looked dubious. "You look ridiculous, Tony."

"You're just jealous. I make everything look good," Tony added with his trademark smirk.

Ducking his head, Steve let out a small laugh. But as he was about to say something in return, there was a loud growl from behind them. 

Automatically, Steve maneuvered away from Tony's arms and put a protective arm in front of him, while Tony scrambled to stay standing with his wound. The Garm was awake, and looking more furious than ever. It bared his teeth at the two as Steve turned on the photonic shield and held it up. "I guess I'm going to get to test your shield sooner than I thought," Steve glanced over to Tony with a small smile. 

"Go get 'em, Cap," Tony forced a smile. It was amazing that he could talk normally at all considering how much pain his leg was in. As Steve moved towards the hound, Tony lowered himself gently to the ground so he was kneeling, trying to take all of the weight off of it. His attempt at being gentle failed big time, though, but he managed to hold himself up with shaky arms. He was starting to see black spots now. Probably not good at all, but Steve didn't need the distraction. He used what strength he had left to watch as Steve approached the beast.

The Garm seemed completely uninterested in Steve. Its glowing green eyes never left Tony's form, despite Steve jumping directly in its path. The hound gave a warning growl to Steve, but Steve did not back down. "You aren't taking him!" Steve yelled. "I just got him back!" He brought the shield down hard on the Garm's head, the hound letting out a horrible whine as the shield connected. But it only took a second for him to recover. He snapped his fangs at the photonic shield, connecting with the display. It brought its fangs down hard. The display held for a moment, and then garbled before vanishing. Steve jumped back, kicking the Garm in the neck as he did so. He landed on the ground in a tumble roll, but made it easily back to his feet. He hit the display on the shield again, and it flashed back to life. "We can do this all day. I'm not letting you have him!"

"But I've already won," a female voice echoed through the red haze. It was a voice that Tony had heard before.

A sharp sting ran through his injury. With a loud hiss, Tony looked down at his leg to see the temporary bandages were soaked through with blood. His vision waved. Looking back up to where Steve was, he saw the woman in black standing next to the giant beast, petting it. She was the one that Tony had seen before when he saw visions of Niflheim. Tony blinked a few times to try to clear his vision of the dark spots over taking it. 

Steve took a precautious step back. "Hela," he breathed, still keeping the shield up for protection. "I've done as you asked. I have defeated the Nidhogg."

"Oh," Hela's green lips turned up in the most evil of smirks. "But it seems that Anthony Stark has already succumbed to Niflheim." She pointing towards Tony, and Steve turned his head back, his face pale. "The Garm has tasted his flesh. He has only moments left before he is mine forever. What a pity. After you tried so hard too."

"No," Steve's voice faltered. "I have the fang. We had an agreement."

"An agreement for your life, yes." Hela waved a hand, and beside her a large black portal appeared as a large white fang floated over from Steve to Hela. The pain in Tony's leg throbbed, and his vision blurred again. He was fading, and fast. "You are free to go back to your own world, Steven Rogers," Hela continued, holding up her right hand. "Anthony Stark, however, belongs to me now," as she said the word 'now', she snapped her fingers.

It was the last sound Tony heard before everything faded into a haze of red and black.


	8. Chapter 8

As he watched Tony's lifeless form fall, Steve's blood ran cold. "No," he breathed. Forgetting Hela, the portal, the Garm, everything, and ran straight to Tony. Lowering himself to the ground, he took Tony's head in his hands and gently shook him. "Tony? Tony, wake up."

Hela let out an evil chuckle. "It's of no use, Steven Rogers. His soul belongs to me now. He will become part of my beautiful collection." She snapped again. A green crystal formation began to push out of the ground near Tony's feet. It was the same emerald crystal he had seen those helpless bodies floating in when he first got to Niflheim. 

His stomach dropping, Steve shook his head. "No, you can't do this. You can't take him! The world needs him!" The crystal began to overtake Tony's feet. Lowering his head, Steve brought Tony's limp body close to him. "I need him," he whispered.

As he whispered those words, Steve felt a surge of energy surround him. It was hot, yet comforting. He opened his eyes to see the robe sparkling as it had not done before. Steve pulled away from Tony only to see his eyes wide open, glowing a bright ruby red. "Tony?" Steve questioned. 

The green crystal around Tony's feet exploded as his body began to levitate. The robe seemed to carry his weight so his lifeless body appeared standing, his feet hovering inches above the ground. His head righted itself, his limbs still hanging loose, with the ruby red eyes still staring. "Hela," A voice came out of Tony's mouth that was definitely not his. It was a woman's voice, her alto echoing with hundreds of other souls. It was unsettling to have such a sound come out of Tony's body. "You have taken a life that you cannot claim."

"Freyja," Hela whispered. Flinching, she took a step back. 

"The one named Anthony Stark bares my robe, and is therefore under my protection. You acted against him, even though you knew this to be true." Tony's limbs came back to life with great flourish. They spread wide, the ruby and golden robe shining so brightly that Steve had to shield his eyes. "I will reclaim that which is under my protection, including that of his soul and body."

"His life belongs to me!" Hela exclaimed. "The Garm has claimed him!"

"Anthony Stark came to Niflheim of his own free will, to save this poor soul," Tony's body gestured over to Steve, "Which you took unlawfully. Their connection runs deep."

"Steven Rogers came on his own volition!" 

"Because of _your_ trickery," Tony's body pointed ominously at Hela, his eyes turning a deeper red. "You have overstepped your bounds, and therefore, I shall act accordingly. Be glad that I do not ask the Allfather to distribute punishment for your actions." 

Hela let out a frustrated scream as she readied a large, black energy blast. Steve tensed as he watched helplessly as the energy blast headed towards Tony’s floating body. The blast collided with a large golden aura surrounding Tony and was absorbed. Hela let out another frustrated howl. Tony turned to Steve, "Steven, her cloak." Acting automatically, Steve threw his shield towards Hela without even standing up. There was no time to waste. They needed to end this.

She easily dodged the shield, moving to her right. "Pathetic mortal," she muttered, smirking as readied another energy blast, this time pointed at Steve. 

As the shield ricocheted, it came from behind and tore through the left side of Hela's black cloak, ripping it from her. She let out a terrible scream as the left side of her body shriveled up in seconds. Her left side looked as though it belonged to a corpse. Unable to support herself any longer, Hela fell to her knees as she moaned in pain. Holding her left arm protectively, she screamed, " _How dare you_!" 

"What just—" 

"Hela's cloak is the source of her power. Without it, she is nothing. Worry not for her. She will eventually recover." Tony turned to Steve, still floating above the ground and enveloped in a luminous ruby glow. "You did well, Steven Rogers," the voices said.

"But I wasn't fast enough— Tony—" Steve swallowed. He looked over to Hela, curled over herself and writhing in pain. There was no way she would release him now. It was over.

"You shall see him soon enough," Tony smiled, taking Steve's left hand in its own. His feet lifting off of the ground, Steve's eyes widened. He looked to Tony's face with those haunting ruby eyes. As the red haze vanished around them and the stars overtook his vision, Steve dared to hope.

...

The last thing Tony thought he would see when he woke up was a golden ceiling. In all honesty, he thought it was a bit odd that he woke up at all. He had lost a lot of blood, and there had been that pretty evil looking woman gloating about how she won his soul just before he lost consciousness. He really thought that it was game over forever. But no, now there was a golden ceiling that seemed to glisten like no kind of gold Tony had seen before.

He blinked a few times trying to clear his vision. His entire body ached and his head was pounding. Maybe the golden ceiling was a hallucination. "There's no fucking way I made it into heaven," he tried to say— although it came out in indistinguishable grunts and a muffled "into heaven". God, his throat felt like he hadn't drank anything in months. 

A hand grabbed his right hand and squeezed. "You're not in heaven," a voice said. 

Tony closed his eyes, knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt who the voice belonged to. "Well," he cleared his throat loudly, still trying to recover his voice. "Hell would make more sense. But if I'm in hell, then why are _you_ here? And holding my hand?" Tony turned his head to the right and opened his eyes again. There Steve was— an unreadable expression on his face. Letting out a sigh, Tony said, "Is my eternal torment to be how I never confessed to you, or something? Because I can think of like ten worse things right off the top of my head."

"That's... a strange kind of hell, Tony." The vision of Steve, or whatever he was, rubbed his thumb into Tony's hand. Oh sweet Jesus. Tony had to hold back the moan. Okay, he took it back. Having Steve there holding his hand may have been a brilliant plan of torture. He would go crazy within hours if this is how it was going to go. He tried to pull his hand away. "Oh, sorry," Steve said, ducking his head as he hesitantly let Tony's hand go. "I was just so happy to see you wake up, I didn't mean—"

Now Tony felt like an asshole. He thought about taking Steve's hand back, but then it would look even stranger probably. Running his left hand through his hair, he asked, "So I'm not dead?"

"Far from it, Anthony Stark," a female voice said. 

Tony tried to sit up, only to become dizzy again. Steve was there within an instant, helping him sit up, and yet trying not to touch him. It was awkward. Yeah, he really felt like an asshole. "Freyja?" Tony croaked.

Freyja had entered the small golden room, her face looking forlorn as ever, but there was a small smile on her lips, so that was something, Tony supposed. She had taken back her robe, and had it thrown around her shoulders in all of its golden and ruby grandeur. It shone more brightly when she was wearing it. "I am glad to see you are awake. You have had quite a journey." 

"Where is the crazy woman in the S&M getup? And why doesn't she own my soul right now?"

Steve looked over his shoulder, to Freyja as she approached Tony's bedside. "Freyja did something. She possessed your body for a while, which was— unsettling."

Eyeing Freyja Tony replied, "Yeah I can see how it would be."

Freyja knelt down and touched Tony's forehead. "I apologize, but I had to seize your body for a short time. This should restore you."

Her touch was warm, even warmer than Steve's, and as she touched him, he could feel his body be overtaken it. He hummed as his muscles relaxed and the ache in his head vanished. "Hmmm thank you," Tony said as he leaned into her touch.

"Thank Steven Rogers," Freyja replied, her smile growing slightly bigger. She looked over to Steve and nodded, "For it is the strength of his love that heals you." 

Tony glanced over to Steve, who was busy trying to bury his chin into his right shoulder, and stared. "Um... well... thanks, Steve."

Steve's, if possible, turned an even darker shade of pink. "I want to thank you as well, Freyja. For everything." Ducking his head, he added, "Your husband's name... is Odr, right?"

"You know of Odr? Did you find him in your travels?" Freyja replied, looking to Tony, who shook his head no. Her shoulders sank slightly and the little hope that had been her eyes vanished.

"I did," Steve said.

She turned her eyes to Steve, their ruby color unnerving him. "Where?"

"In Niflheim," Steve explained. "He said that he was hiding from his mistakes, and that you would never forgive him."

"What?" Freyja breathed. "How could he—"

"He saved my life," Steve added. "The last time I saw him he was fighting an unwinnable battle with Ymir. He distracted the thing while I made my way to the tree. It didn't seem like he would make it..." Steve's voice drifted.

Freyja shook her head. "Do not fret, Steven. It would take more than Ymir to stop Odr. He is a great warrior."

Clearing his throat, Steve said, "He was wounded, badly. I don't—" his voice trailed off as he looked Freyja in the eyes. "I owe him a lot. It's the least that I can do to tell you that you should forgive him."

"Well, of course I forgive him! I never—" She shook her head. "That man. Thank you Steven Rogers, for telling me. I will send him your regards."

"And my thanks."

Freyja stood up. "I shall leave you alone to discuss things. Once you are strong enough to do so, I will accompany you to the Bifröst, where Heimdall will see you home." Freyja exited the room after one last glance.

Steve tilted his head to the side in contemplation. After a moment, he asked, "Tony... how did you plan to get home?"

With a nervous laugh, Tony said, "Well, I'm not sure if 'plan' is the word I would use. There was a 46.567% chance that we would figure out some way home," Tony shrugged. "While they weren't the best of odds, I was willing to risk it."

Steve visibly paled. Standing up from his chair, he paced the small room like a caged tiger. "But we hadn't— if Freyja hadn't intervened—"

"I couldn't leave you in that place alone, Steve. I saw it with my own eyes, okay?" Tony got to his feet and blocked Steve's stomping path. "That hell-scape of a world that you spent three months in _alone_. Three months! While I was on earth, none the wiser! Just pretend for a moment that you realize how I felt, okay?"

"Tony—"

This was a word vomit that Tony had been holding back ever since he had found out about the Skrull. "And while we are on the subject, how did you even manage to land yourself in the Asgardian afterlife to begin with? Didn't you know that American heroes don't go to some magical version of hell without at least leaving a forwarding address?"

"Tony!" Steve grabbed Tony around the shoulders and shook him. As Tony opened his mouth to say more, Steve leaned into his personal space and pushed his lips against Tony's open ones.

It was a much wetter kiss than he had shared with the Skrull Steve. That may have been because Tony's mouth was gaping open. But as Steve pulled away from the kiss, Tony pulled him in closer and kissed him properly. Steve let out a surprised sound, and then relaxed into the kiss. He leaned into Tony, pulling him in close. Steve's warmth enveloped Tony's entire being. Yes, this was a vast improvement over the awkward Skrull kiss.

After a moment, Steve pulled back, despite Tony's moaning protests. His lips were swollen and a deep red. It was a look that Tony could really get used to seeing on Steve. "I'm sorry," Steve muttered, turning his head away.

"So help me, Steve if you are apologizing about kissing me, I'm going to punch you. And I don't really feel like breaking my hand on top of everything else that's happened to me in the last... however many hours I've been searching for you in Niflheim. It's probably been weeks on earth time. Hey, it might even be Christmas when we get home, wouldn't that be nice?"

"Tony, you're babbling," Steve said, a silencing finger over Tony's mouth. "Just stop, okay? I'm sorry for not telling you about Niflheim... before all of this. It wasn't... Oh I don't know. When the Norn stones split us all up, I was taken into Niflheim."

"Yeah," Tony shrugged. "I kind of already figured that part out." Steve stared. "It's the process of elimination, Steve," Tony explained, eyes rolling. "There were seven stones, seven different worlds. That's partially how I found you. I just can't believe it took me so long to figure it out."

A strange smile overtook Steve's lips for the briefest of moments. He shook his head, looking frustrated with Tony. It was a default expression when people were dealing with him, so Tony was pretty used to it. "In order to regroup with the team to help fight Loki, I made a deal with Hela—"

"No," Tony said, putting both his hands on top of Steve's mouth. "You know what? I don't need to hear it. I kind of just died trying to save you okay? And then, apparently, was possessed by a Goddess. So we're going to save this fight about your lack of self-preservation—"

"Oh because you have such a great self-preservation track record yourself—" Steve retorted after pushing Tony's hands away from his mouth. "You followed me into Niflheim with a hope and prayer that we would—"

"And _instead_ —" Tony continued, moving his arms to encircle Steve's neck in a loose hug. "I suggest we have make-out time. Or we can go back to invalid healing time. But I think the former is much more fun than the latter."

Steve made a disapproving face. "You need to rest."

"I'll take that as a maybe?" Tony leaned in close to Steve's body, bringing their lips to almost touching.

Steve chuckled quietly. "This doesn't seem like a maybe to me." Steve wrapped his arms around Tony's torso and led them over to the make-shift sick-bed. Easing the two of them to lay down, he turned to Tony and said, "Just rest for now." He placed a soft kiss on Tony's cheek. "I'm not going to fade away again so soon, I promise."

**Author's Note:**

> The Avengers fandom truck that I have been run over with (repeatedly) came out of nowhere, and I really didn't think this time a year ago I would like "WOOO AVENGERS!" I mean, I liked the Marvel films and read the comics when I was in school occasionally, but man I really never thought I was going to be shipping any characters, uh, ever. AND THEN I WAS INTRODUCED TO STEVE/TONY. And then I could not have enough Avengers in my life. Or Cap. Or Iron Man. Hence why I started watching Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes on Netflix.
> 
> This project came about because of the killer cliffhanger that was the end of S1. I started playing with the idea of this story after seeing the finale in March, and started writing it before the new episodes started to air, so it was quite strange to see how my story differentiated from how Marvel plotted S2, which in itself was also a series of events I never expected. I tried to keep some plot elements the same, which meant changing my drafts multiple times as new episodes started to air. For a while, it was nice because certain events with Tony fit perfectly! But then it got a bit silly. I have issues with S2, and not just because they decided to throw out the whole Hela plot point that I hinged this story on, but I am still sad to see Avengers: EMH canceled. It was a great show and a nice vehicle to introduce people to non-Marvel movie plots. The new Avengers cartoon, whenever it starts, is going to have a lot to live up to.
> 
> As for the story, once again I spent all of my time building up a world and then at the end going "oh yeah, this is a shipping story!" I really need to stop doing that. So for those of you who were looking for steamy Steve/Tony action, I'm sorry. Per usual, I did a bunch of research for this story, mostly consisting of reading lots and lots of Norse myth and trying to make sense of all the different translations. In the end, I picked what I liked and would help move the plot along, because a lot of that stuff is just too confusing.
> 
> Thank you my awesome betas ken_ichijouji and unavoidedcrisis for helping sort out my babble. Also HUGE thanks to my artists doctorkara and slashersivi for the fantastic art. I HEART YOU GUYS. And also, thank YOU for reading! I hope you enjoyed it :D

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Sunset in Asgard](https://archiveofourown.org/works/625743) by [slashersivi](https://archiveofourown.org/users/slashersivi/pseuds/slashersivi)




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